S T E P S
by Abderian Halcyon
Summary: Claire Steele supposed that life often chose her to be the recipient of difficult news, just to see how she could handle the heat and the pressure of really becoming someone dependable and good. She's sent into another world by a certain person seeking selfish gain-She's caught and saved by Sanji, and learns what it means to protect something with all your heart. SanjiXoc
1. Prologue

STEPS © ChidoriShiori  
One Piece © Eiichiro Oda

** STEPS**

Disclaimer: I do not own One Piece. I only own this story, my character, and this here plot

–

**Prologue**

**Breathing**

* * *

_When I regained consciousness my mind was sluggish and distant. A whole plethora of noise from my radio fuzzed in and out of focus before it sputtered and died. _

_The silence dragged on for some time before I realized my situation fully.  
Something bad had happened. _

'_A fierce swerve of movement, metal scraping and whining, and before I could open my eyes—before I could recognize my own scared hazel orbs staring back at me in my cracked rear view mirror- a breathtaking sensation shook my body to its core. _

_Confusion_

_Alarm_

_Trepidation_

_Pain'_

_I gasped, and it was a pathetically strangled sound as I arched my back in a sudden frenzy to move and escape from the sharp shocks in my back. _

_I was in my car._

_I hit something._

_Hydroplaned_

_Wrecked_

_Twisting desperately in my seat, I wailed my fists upon the steering wheel before clutching it tightly. A silent cry tore through me as the jittery shivers of fear pooled in my stomach. It was suffocating, this terror, it was all consuming—like I was teetering on the edge of some enormous cliff and there was nothing I could do to stop the pounding of adrenaline from rushing though my veins. I was hurting. My lower lip quivered with repressed sobs, and I tightly squeezed my eyes shut. The suddenly cramped and claustrophobically restricted seat squeezed me uncomfortably. Upon moving my spine too roughly I yelped and stilled instantly._

_Something's wrong._

_Something bad_

_Hurts_

_Wounded_

_In my horror I frantically surveyed my surroundings, crying in my seat and craning my neck. My car was rested on its passenger side, knocked over like a toy on the damp and empty street. Broken glass was littered on the asphalt and concrete curb from the dislodged windshield and splintered side windows. Through the caved in metal in the roof, all packed in and jagged from the light pole my car was wrapped around, I witnessed rain beating down on the side walk. Settling my gaze back on the interior of the car, I glanced down towards my now cramping stomach. I was hunched at on odd angle, slightly hanging from my seat and yet pinned. _

_My teary eyes blurred the scarlet color of blood soaking through my shirt. The shiny red was thick and it was spreading a wet warmth across my skin. It was by far the most I'd ever seen in my life._

_I gagged. _

_I cried._

_I screamed. _

_Discomfort clawed into ever fiber in my body, and panic spread like a virus. My seat belt bit into my throat, breathing was difficult. I was pressed in between the sharp stab throbbing in my back and the slick steering wheel._

_I chocked, and without realizing it, without being able to control it, a broken sob bubbled from my throat as an explosion of pain__coursed through me._

Blackness swept over me, my eyes rolled back, I released a held breathe.

_Dizzy._

_Disoriented_

_Stunned_

_Lost_

_A numb distance settled over my body and mind. My eyes fluttered, I saw my lap, the blood pooling in my seat and soaking into the fabric of my jeans. My forehead hurt from where I had passed out against the wheel, and to my irritation my sight was fuzzy and unfocused. _

_Isolated_

_Removed_

_Disconnected_

_Shielded_

_My body was slumped over the center console of my car and an ethereal lamp light filtered in from the torn roof above my head. I limply dangled over my right side, my ribs were screaming to move but there was something more important at hand._

_In the passenger seat_

_My sister._

_I forgot. I forgot. I forgot._

_Immediately I was fully awake. _

_Desperate_

_Penny Steele._

_Please be okay._

_Please be okay._

_My arm reached out and searched the seat next to me; I swung it from side to side, clawing at the air while my chest pressed against the steering wheel. I felt cool wind flit through my fingers._

_Empty_

_Gone_

_Where_

_Where?_

_Where?_

_WHERE?!_

"_Penny..." I called haltingly. My voice was weak and soft to my ears. _

_Worried_

_Frightened_

_Where are you?_

_**I'm so sorry.**_

_My senses felt muted as my heart began to thump in my chest like a warning bell. My car was rattling; a harsh hissing sound was becoming less and less filtered. Glass crunched in the distance, light footsteps fell upon the ground like ghosts and suddenly stopped. _

_Steps_

_Sirens_

_A storm_

_A trickling sound of rain, running water, leaking gasoline_

_A flick of metal like flint._

_My head swam, darkness flashed before my eyes again and again. _

"_Penny..." _

_My hands gripped my slick steering wheel tight, on the dark road, lights flashed._

"_Pen..." I brushed my hair out of my face while pulling my right arm back from its slack position in the air, the seat was empty, I was grasping at nothing. _

_My little sister wasn't in the passenger seat..She must have left to get help. _

_Must have_

_Reaching behind me weakly I traced the cool metal of the caved in roofing, it obscured the view of the backseat of my car down to the point where it had me pinned against the wheel._

_My fingers, shaking and unsteady grazed warm broken skin. Gasping in quick breaths my hands traveled to my legs and I gripped my thighs tightly. _

_My knuckles turned white, I clawed my nails into the fabric of my jeans._

_I felt nothing._

_It was a sudden, halting feeling that stunned me. _

_A hollow chill pooled in my gut. _

_The smell of gasoline hit my nose like a sledgehammer, a squeal of tires, and the wailing sirens rose to a loud crescendo._

_Light flared near the hood of my car, a whooshing sound, like a plume of compressed air sent a warm breeze fanning across my face._

_Penny, Penny, Penny._

_Fire was blooming from under the crunched metal of my hood._

_It flickered though the rain, a typical gas fire, it was strong and fierce—so unlike me._

_My hands grew slack against my legs, and I found a sudden acceptance flood through me._

_Was I going to die? _

_**Didn't I have stuff to live for or something?**_

_A hand gripped my shoulder through the window; a figure was there, shouting in panic. _

_The person was dressed in a paramedic uniform. _

_The light pole that I had crashed into was still flickering stubbornly and it cast an odd halo like luminescence across the back of the strangers head and shadowed out their face._

_Two others gathered around him, they were shouting orders and were bringing out a large tool to cut into my crumpled door._

_They were arguing on what to do, or at least shouting loudly with tension cutting into every pause that lingered._

_I dizzily, glanced up into the rear view mirror, the single crack slicing down the middle. My hazel eyes gazed back at me with my pupils dilated, eyelids dropped, my iris's seemed to shiver in the middle of the white expanse. My eyes were so unfamiliar to me. _

_Why were they so distant?_

_Hazy_

_Why didn't they seem to belong to Claire Steele?_

_To me._

_I breathed in and sighed softly, the flames were close, it seemed the Fire fighters and the paramedics had to decide on what to do. The heat began to encroach around the frame of the car and it was spreading through the gasoline pooling on the street. Strong hands grasped my shoulders and at my sides. _

_I was pulled from the jagged metal. _

_My hands snapped up, strength filled me, a passionate life filled my eyes for a excruciating second. I ducked away from my reflection, not wanting to see. I pressed my forehead against the wheel, and I screamed._

–

_That night, the paramedic repeated to me -maybe a million times over- to concentrate on breathing. I thought it was stupid, the brace they had me strapped in was stupid, and I was searching for a reason as to why they were __**panicking**__ so much. All I wanted to do was sleep but they hovered over me, ordering me to count out loud, to look into a hand held light, and to respond to touch tests. My sputtering of blood and foggy mind made me think twice about biting the paramedics head off with below the belt comments._

"_Focus on breathing."_

"_It will distract you from the pain." _

_The blonde one that was always in my sight would repeat this in a rushed voice as he fumbled around to find certain IV's and medicine in the cramped space of the ambulance truck. I finally began to comprehend the hesitant look of worry, and the pure, good natured expression in his eyes.  
Hesitantly, I began taking steady breaths.  
_

_Just like he told me too.  
_

_Over the course of the drive, and over the whirl of the siren, I stared up at the light bulb blazing over my bloody body. _

_I realized that this was my entire fault._

_It was my accident._

_My responsibility._

_My mistake._

_Penny's was going to hate me._

_And I deserved it._

_Penny._

_Penny._

_Penny._

_And somehow it was more than that._

_I wasn't who I __**wanted**__ to be._

_Pretty._

_Perfect._

_Smart._

_The best._

_I wasn't who I used to be._

_Shy._

_Normal._

_Average._

_Claire Steele._

_The ugly, deceitful, backstabbing creature I transformed into caused this. _

_If I hadn't done this._

_If I hadn't done that._

_Penny._

_Penny._

_If I wasn't busy yelling at my little sister, making her cry, because I wasn't getting what __**I**__ wanted, I might have noticed that blur of movement hitting my front fender._

_I could have reacted better._

_Where is Penny?_

_Why wasn't she beside me?_

_What happened?_

_What happened to Penny?_

_**And suddenly, I wanted to laugh at myself in my own broken up face...Why was I suddenly going through this now?  
**_

_**This self awareness and personality check**_**?**

"_Quit holding your breath! Breathe!"_

_I clenched my teeth tight as tears threatened to spill from my eyes. That awful sad feeling that you get when you're scolded, insulted, worried—it welled up in me like a balloon that wouldn't pop. Soon I felt as if it was going to tear me apart from the inside out. My eyebrows tented, everything else in my stupid life was officially on the back burner._

_Penny. _

_Penny._

_Penny._

_There it was; my reason. My worry outweighed my anger as I whimpered._

_Once upon a time my little sister was everything to me: my best friend, strength, and support. I was everything and more to her, I helped her speak when she didn't want to, lent her my voice when she craved to recede back in herself._

_I had betrayed that trust, cut her deep with my words._

_**Why was a I so stupid?! **_

_My reason_

_My worry_

_Please be okay._

_Please be safe._

_"My l-little sister. Where is she?"_

"_Your sister?"_

_My voice cracked terribly, and the paramedic's face softened with sympathy. He leaned over from his seat to gaze into my face, to offer his support. He held my hand gently._

"_What about your sister?" He questioned softly as if he thought he would startle me if he wasn't whispering.. _

"_She was with me—In the crash. Is she okay?"_

_A hesitant and a suddenly heavily guarded expression shifted in his features and posture-it wasn't over protective or deceiving, but he was trying to stop a few choice emotions from pouring into his blue eyes._

_I appraised him with a mean scrutiny, suddenly feeling a wrenching in my chest as my worry spiked. The beeping next to me increased in tempo, and he instantly snapped into action, pulling a mask over my nose and mouth. He was unsure, and he looked up towards his companion that I couldn't see from my position._

"_We'll figure this out." He said calmly, "Just breathe."_

_While blinking fiercely the paramedic's hand that held my hand drifted to his shoulder where a Walkie-talkie lay._

_I tore my eyes away from him, to stare into the light above my head. _

_Penny. _

_Penny._

_Where are you?_

"_This is Carson, can I get to dispatch? The driver of the white Sudan says she had her sister with her during the accident. At this moment she is unaccounted for."_

_A thick silence clicked in the line for one long moment, and in the next a slight hiss resounded from the speaker. _

"_Carson this is Sarah from Dispatch, fire crews reported a body in the back seat of the white Sudan. They are trying to douse the fire. Not sure of the main cause as of yet. Currently a valid ID cannot be verified."_

"_A- a body?"_

"_They can't tell who it is yet, and now they're saying they won't be able to get to it. The flames are stripping that car down to its frame."  
_

_**Who else can it possibly be?!**_

_**It's Penny.**_

_**She's dead.**_

_A sudden stream of "No's" began flooding from my mouth, a bitter taste formed on my tongue._

"_Hey, hey listen to me it's going to be alright!" Paramedic Carson's voice was empty and immensely sorrowful._

_I wasn't listening._

_Brown hair. Gentle eyes. Small smiles._

_Burned up in the car I crashed._

_That was my little sister. _

_Penny. _

_Penny._

_Penny._

_My head swam, as I chocked. _

"_No! No! Not Pennnny!" I heaved a shaky sob, waving my hands uselessly._

_That horrible ice spread throughout my body, and the heavy weight of guilt sank in my stomach. I was going to throw up. A vital piece of me was shutting down, ducking away, and becoming cold... This can't be happening. _

"_No! NO! NO! NO!"_

_**It's all my fault. **_

_**How could I?!**_

_The stunned silence from the paramedics continued as I began to cry and wail uncontrollably, their discomfort settled in the car like a thick suppressive cloud, and there was nothing any of us could do._

"_PENNY! I'm sorry!"_

_I gasped and thrashed angrily against the neck brace that was pinching my skin. I wanted to run. I wanted to get away. I didn't want to go to the hospital. I was done. _

"_Shhh- Listen-"_

"_No!" I shrieked, my voice becoming horse and unguarded and bouncing wildly within the car. I was breaking down, I was guilty._

_In response the blue eyed paramedic sank in his seat with his hands folded in his lap, suddenly solemn._

"_I'm so sorry Penny."_

…

"_I'm sorry…"_

_The ride to the hospital was long, and the men in the car had some sort of instinctual understanding of what to do. They did their job, gave me what I needed to survive, and let me sink into my comfort zone of old memories and fresh tears. Sometimes, when I was calm, the Blue eyed paramedic would wipe my cheeks as I sniffled. He made me want to bawl my eyes out with his whispers of comfort that I didn't deserve._

_Didn't he know about the awful things I had said tonight, the things I had shouted out at penny in irrational anger? _

_Why wasn't he slapping me around for saying all those things to my own sweet little sister!?_

_Shouting at her, and not caring about her feelings. That's what I did as Penny sank back into the passenger seat, trying not to cry._

_I wanted to SCREAM at myself, why didn't I die?! _

"_Breathe." The man urged gently._

_And I did…Very reluctantly.  
_

Breathe in, and my chest would rise.

Breathe out, and I would hear myself wheeze painfully. The ambulance sirens would ring as the car bolted us down the road towards the Hospital for critical care.

Breathe in, and the pain in my back would shoot fire everywhere except for my heart.

Breathe out, and cry faintly for my family who would be there at the hospital, wondering where Penny was.

Breathe in, and think about how selfish I was, how mean I was to others just so I could get someone's approval. The chain of events of tonight, all lingered on one cause and one cause only.

It was me. My fault. My decisions.

I couldn't take it back.

Breathe out, and along with the carbon dioxide, small pieces of my false personality would crack and chip away.

Breathe in, and become more like my old self that used to care about others.

Breathe out, and shudder as guilt settled deep inside me like a poison.

Breathe in, and become vulnerable, shaky, and defenseless.

I battered myself with cruel insults, using that voice I would use against kids who were announced as lame and unpopular. That voice that wasn't even my own...

I don't know why I craved to be like the rest of those girls at my school anymore.

They had all the wrong priorities for all the wrong reasons.

I remember I used to use that voice to lash cruel jokes towards others, like they were beneath me and as if I was I was better than them. I used to laugh and laugh in response to their sputters of wordlessness, their weakness at a simple jab one of the girls threw. It wasn't as if we were out to get everyone…It was just that anyone who got in our way were painted like targets and brought down so we could rise and be better.

It was a false power and strength that controlled me, it wasn't my true personality, I didn't want it for the same reasons they did. I wanted to fit in, didn't want to be a target myself, and I had used that mean spite towards my little sister, right before the crash.

I gasped loudly, beating myself up, thinking to myself in that horrible, wretched, voice of the shady ugly person I had become.

"_Breathe beautiful...Oh, and don't forget honey, it's all your __**fault she's dead**__." _


	2. Wilted

© ChidoriShiori  
One Piece © Eiichiro Oda

** STEPS**

Disclaimer: I do not own One Piece. I only own this story, my character, and this here plot

Teeny Tiny microscopic Authors note: Ah-ha!~

–

**CHAPTER ONE**

**Wilted**

* * *

6 Months after accident.

6 Months, 3 days, 4 hours, and 23 minutes since Penny Steele was laid to rest.

Claire Steele, Age 16.

I felt the stares long before I was able to meet them.

They were almost sticky with the way they fastened to me; a person would usually let their eyes wander for a few seconds before realizing what they were doing. They tried to pull away, kinda of reluctant and self accommodating, but sure enough they came back again and again to loiter impolitely as if trying to figure out what who they were looking at. The recipient, ME, focused down and away to any gazes I would happen to meet even though those staring would have more of a right to be embarrassed than myself.

All in all, school was terrible.

A whole load of situations I knew, but wasn't prepared to face, came at me from every angle—and I didn't have many friends to rely on any more.

There was no way to break the inner tension I felt—it was impossible to just _get over it_ on my own, but was here in the rut with little company, and I could do little to stop it.

It was like I was being bombarded with catch 22's—cuz I didn't want to go to school, but I had to like every other kid. I still wanted to be _happy_ and I could only do that by moving forward, but I couldn't be happy if I had all these things setting me back that were apart of moving forward.

I mean I tried to set a standard for myself and dodge as many obstacles as possible while hiding from the fact that I was missing vital pieces of myself—but it was easier said than done.

Teachers felt as if I was too withdrawn already to let me delve even deeper into my shell, and thus attracted more attention to me when they tried to persuade me to leap into the frigid waters of group work and communication.

Even if I tried to stay quiet and out of the way, eyes drifted towards me as if compelled— Especially Freshmen, when they heard the watered down and revamped rumors about me.

Their eyes usually widened in shock and then they _narrowed_ in recognition.

It never stopped; it never seemed to get old to them.

A whole slur of curses rang in my head toward them; I bitterly clenched my fists.

It was best to ignore it, and get through my day without any hitches, but even if I tried my best—sometimes I simply couldn't avoid these people. At first I was slow and clumsy while trying to navigate the hallways in my wheelchair, and in the beginning I felt incompetent compared to the kids with healthy fit legs strutting beside me, but now I had to admit to myself that my patience was paper thin and as much as I wanted to hurry to my next class, to get the day over with, the slackers clogging the wide halls were holding me back from my shaky hands wanting to throttle my chair into next week.

Mumbling meaningless phrases of excuse me, pardon me's, having to ask people to open doors for me.

To say the least; the social shock of going back to school was a stinging slap in the face.

After my first few days back it was like a neon sign was around every corner, flashing at me, drilling into my head that I was out of place. I was stuck in a room filled with hostiles and awkward teachers. The journey will be hard, said the encouraging posters in my counselor's office—_**suck it up and live through it**_, spat the logical part of my mind.

Every short conversation I participated in made me realize how out of practice I was to interacting with people near my age. What had I been doing for the past 6th months? Recovering, mourning, wallowing in my own self pity? A happy school-less experience?

I had only been experiencing somber dinners, dull therapy, and quiet conversations between my family and doctors. It was either painfully formal, or too personal for me to handle. I yearned for middle ground, and I couldn't find it.

In the High school jungle I fell from the tree tops and was on the bottom of the food chain. Symbolism, hyperbole, metaphors, drawled my old English teacher, you need these in life, she said—who mind you gave me unfair advantages in every paper I turned in out of pity.

And thinking of the tree tops, _they_ were avoiding me, making me feel like nothing. They were shallow, dense, snooty, and beautiful, grade A students. My old friends. Some talked to me sparingly, but they were the ones I never 'connected' with, and the odd hellos and goodbyes stopped when they realized I wasn't going to put in any active effort.

I didn't want to gossip anymore. I didn't want to hear the newest drama or the pointless tv show results. I wasn't very adept at keeping up with any of that anyway, so why do something you don't even like to do? So as a result, certain acquaintances looked at me as if I was growing another head…Some just look past me; like I'm not and I will _not_ be heard…Almost as if they want me to disappear.

Good riddance.

"_She's gotten really lonely."_

"_I heard her sister died in the crash, it's her fault really."_ My hands squeezed the handles of my wheelchair as I looked down at my uneaten food.

"_She used to be so outgoing…Hm? Well, __**I **__remember when she actually used to be sweet. Then she started following the mean girls around like a satellite."_

Every morning, every afternoon, every lunch period sat stiff and achingly alone-I barley ever looked up from the spot right smack dab in front of me. To face the accusatory stares and pity filled glances of my teachers, those hurtful snickers from kids I used to make fun of; all those things made me want to curl in on myself and cry.

"_What goes around comes around." _

I took a deep breath and poked at my food at a corner table in the large circular cafeteria. The chairs were all different colors of reds, blue's, and greens. Windows peaked from the roof and let in sunshine, the outdoor commons was full with kids wearing light jackets and t-shirts. The talking of students blended into one loud noise, and upon feeling the stinging around my eyes I kept my inhalation deep within my chest, and pretended to be doing something interesting with my binder.

That comment really hurt.

…**Maybe it hurt genius, because it's true?**

And perhaps some obvious things don't need to be said out loud well within my hearing distance.

**You're right. I mean, since you know the, 'be nice to others' lesson oh so well. **

I shake my head with a sigh, I swear, if there was anything worse than the radioactive hot school potatoes, it's my own head-

"Hey, buddy, you okay?" A feather light voice, brimming with a _**blank repetitive greeting tone,**_ **like she's practiced it in the mirror**, and a sweet tinge of good humor.

I blink at my food once and glanced up with more than a twinge of confusion; "P-Pardon me?"

I suppose I was answered with a resounding slam of heavy books, a clumpy school bag, and the **biggest** 3 inch binder I had ever seen in my life. The girl dumped her things till they practically rained on my table and attracted the attention of at least two of my schools assistant principals and at least 11 surrounding tables.

…

"Hi!" She chirped.

"…Hello…?" My hazel eyes blinked widely in surprise, and in a knee jerk reaction that I was just barely able to suppress, I was able to hide the look of insult.

She grinned happily at my recognition, and I buckled at the quickness of how everything was transpiring to ask why she was suddenly sitting down. Next to me. Smiling.

What's happening, and why?

**Don't you dare let her sit next to you! No no no, it's been long enough getting adjusted to school again. **

Well I can't stop her now. I can't tell her to go away. I don't want to sit by myself here either!

**If you want company you should roll right up to Brianna and Courtney at the regular table, and get your damn spot back!**

I fought a groan and winced inwardly, more than a little irritated with my negative tendencies that still were showing through, and also bothered by the truth of it all. Brianna and Courtney replaced me with Lucke`. Pronouced Luck-Ay about a week after my arrival back at school and I was still pretty miffed about it. And I don't even know this girl, she could be the best person in the world for all I know; stop being a jerk. Stop. It's not cool.

**Don't lower your standards!**

The blue eyed girl was dressed **like a total weirdo**…

All bright colors and black at the same time.

Clashing, meeting, and oddly setting off her face to look subdued and not washed out.

Bangles of different hues danced on her wrists, her worn sneakers had duck tape wrapped tightly around the ends.

A layered T-shirt combo and golden earrings dangling by only one ear. Her hair was streaked with colors galore and her eyes were an odd clear blue, maybe from contacts.

The right word is unique, not weird. Say hello. Now.

"Uh-um…" I sputtered, searching desperately for something to say while brushing my brown hair both towards my face and away from my eyes in one sweep of my fingers. I need to be friendly.

If not for me and my guilt, but for Penny, my little sister, I owe it to her. I need to be honest, real, and _friendly_.

_And I need a friend._

Okay, friendly…I don't know if I have that.

**At least you have a blubbering, shy, idiot down.**

I looked around quickly, suddenly nervous and blushing, and all too aware of my words crowding in my head, but not being said.

My eyes settled onto mystery girls binders covered in odd cartoons. Some pictures looked like they were cut out from some comic book pages, doodles popped out from the paper, and stickers of Hello-kitty with drawn on fire shooting out of their mouths ran along the corners.

"So! How's it going my new nakama? You looked all on your lonesome and so was I! So- Oh and I was in fact, over yonder- "

She pointed a glittery ringed finger to the opposite side of the lunchroom, "So I decided it upon myself to be to get a friend here in this boring establishment! How about it? Want to be friends?!"

_**I bet you 20 bucks she's a Freshman.**_

She placed her elbows on the table, staring and smiling intensely, her hands cradling her bright face.

_**Come on, bet me.**_

My voice was small, shocked, and quiet: "Y-yeah. Okay. Sure." and I closed my mouth back shut with an audible snap.

What the heck was she talking about? Did someone put her up to this, how embarrassing!

I could feel heat on my cheeks from the gawks this girl was attracting. Eye rolls, raised brows-and I blinked at my old clique feeling an odd sinking in my stomach as I saw their pretty faces contort into pompous sneers at the girl beside me – well except for Alicia, the head honcho, who was giving a great poker face towards her cell phone.

I swallowed and gave an empty look towards my 'friend'.

"MoshiMoshi?" The strange girl asked with a tinge of sarcasm in her pitch. Trying to get my attention, and still smiling, she waved a hand lightly towards my face.

"Uh what does moshi moshi mean?...And that other word you said?" Sounded like foreign jibberish—maybe she was an exchange student?

Oh but that couldn't be right. I didn't hear much of an accent—but then again some people lose it and it crops up again at odd intervals? Maybe?

The odd girl giggled whilst holding a finger up in the air in exclamation. "Nakama~ means comrade or friend, and MoshiMoshi is a greeting. It's Japanese."

"Japanese…That's interesting." I fumbled with my binder, my old one with all the pictures of my _old_ friends: Alicia, Courtney, Brianna, Ashley, and Maria were all burned up, probably ashes and dust in the shell of a car that had I managed to destroy to its more basic parts. Wire's? Plastic bits? Cup holders? Upholstery? My binder. My sister?

Burned. Gone.

I had brought that dolled up notebook on the ride to the party so I could fool my parents into thinking I was going studying at the library. I never did go though…And neither did Penny…

"It is indeed! Japanese is a great language! And hey, would you happen to watch Anime or read manga?"

My eyes darted left and right—under the impression that I was being quizzed. "What are those things?" I managed a twitch of tentative smile slightly at her at her expression, it had shifted into one of mock horror, and she zoomed to her side to pick up her bag.

My little grin nearly flew off my face when I thought for a split second that she might be leaving. Did I offend her? What did I do? She was the first one this year who asked me a real question that had nothing to do with—

"I have so much to tell you!" She blurted, and she thankfully just dumped the contents of her _**second**_ spatter paint designed bag on the table and with a relieved sigh I gently pushed my tray of untouched food away, placing my hands in my lap as I waited patiently.

The girl's eyeliner was an interesting dark and shiny purple, and I fiddled with my ring on my right thumb as I also noticed with a bat of my eyes that she had three ear piercings in her left ear…The right had none what so ever.

Odd, but alright then...

"Anime and manga are the greatest creations known to man! When you get the right ones of course, otherwise they can be quite disturbing." She gave me a strange wary expression and I just stared in wonder.

Were these the kind of people I teased with the girls?

**Probably. They're freaks though, they embarrass themselves.**

They're interesting..._They're themselves, and they don't care who knows it._

I suddenly felt shots of regret shoot through me.

I opened my mouth to ask her about her name, but she shoved a random stack of books into my chest, actually making me roll back a little in my wheelchair.

She giggled "Oops, I'm sorry I get excited~" She smiled well naturedly and I mumbled a passive and happy 'It's alright' back, as I started picking up the odd comic books.

"So is this...Anime?" I asked picking up one book that was titled Naruto, tilting my head to the side.

"Nonono cadet noob, this is manga~ A lot of anime's, like tv shows, are based on the original manga though. This one you're holding is called Naruto, it's about a kid who is a ninja and has a demon locked inside of him!"

I smiled at her excitement, flipping through the book and stopping on a page with a man with spiky hair somehow smiling with just the crinkle of his eye, a mysterious mask covered the bottom half of his face.

"That's Kakashi Hatake, he's Naruto's Sensei…" At the odd word and look I gave her, she corrected herself. "It's means he is Naruto's teacher."

An expression of realization hit my face, "Oh….I get it." Giving her a small nod and little grin, I flipped through some more, before setting it down, "So what's your-"

"Favorite Manga? One Piece. All. The. Way. With anime it has to be Death note, I cry every time I watch it. For mixed reasons, because, I mean I already know the ending—but it just _**gets**_ me. A guy getting caught in the dark side of things and becoming his own enemy!"

I couldn't help getting caught in her...Enthusiasm.

I picked up the book called One Piece, it had a kid in a straw hat, a man with three swords and a girl with orange hair on the front worn cover.

"That guy looks cool." I pointed to the man with green hair.

"It's because he is." She snickered almost smugly, as if she were proud of the compliment I gave him.

"This stuff…it's cool." I shrank in on myself as I smiled shyly. The strange, mysterious girl just smirked broadly.

"Haha, it's an acquired taste, but veeery entertaining!~"

"Oh really? Heh, I need some stuff to keep my mind off of things." My smile flickered a tad, and miss manga only laughed exuberantly.

_**You still sound angry, like she just killed your dog or something.**_

I realize this. I just don't mean to be.

**Lighten up.**

Well, his is pretty much the longest conversation I've had since school has started, I can't help if I'm rusty.

Stranger leaned back in her chair expressively, yawning and giving a wide arch across the back of her chair with a lazy smile. "Oh man, I can lend you some **great** ones! And I know what you mean about wanting to distract yourself! Sometimes life can be so boring!"

I softened my voice and my expression to an even further degree, progressing into a full humble humor. "Mm. Tell me about it."

Looking at me happily she sat up and turned towards me curiously, "You know that wheelchair is lookin' might plain, ever thought of pimping it out? Ooh, or are you getting out of it soon?" She made of odd gesture, as she snapped her fingers, as if she just missed her chance. My eyes widened considerably, giving her expression a casual once over. Did she not know?

She really didn't know about me?

My voice lilted quietly, almost as if I was hinting to her of the news everyone and their mothers new our town. "I-I'm in this thing for good…I got in an accident."

"Hmmm, Methinks we could use duck tap to make it look fantastical. What did you injure?"

"I...I hurt my back…Actually. The doctors tell me it's pretty important." I managed a shaky chuckle for my attempt at lightning the mood, and her expression shifted into amazement as she whistled, quite loudly too.

Goodness gracious.

"I'm sorry that happened but woah! You hurt it enough for a wheelchair?"

I nodded, "Yeah the doctors had to let my spine heal naturally. Not a whole lot they can do about my case."

"So like you can't ever walk again? Is that it?"

_**Wow, she's as blunt as a base ball bat…Or a crowbar!**_

It's refreshing.

"Well, the doctor actually said there is a chance that one day I could get up and walk again, but he said the chances are about 2%...Feeling can return to my legs perhaps in time."

The strange girl looked grossly entranced about the information, and after seeing the sadness on my face she looked as if she had a light bulb over her head that had just turned on for the first time.

"So waaait."

"What?"

"Can you stab a knife through your leg right now? And you wouldn't feel it."

"N-no." I sputtered in laughter, "That's a good question though. Haven't heard that before!"

She grinned and hopped on chair so she was squatting with her chin over her knees, then she put her thumb next to her mouth as if she was biting it.

"You know when I sit like this my power of deduction raises to about 10 %..." She mumbled in a British accent.

I couldn't help but giggle; my expression lightening.

**Kiiinda lame.**

_How funny!_

"The names, Leo, I can tell we're ganna get along fan-bloody- tastic, friend." I chuckled while nodding.

"Um, my names Claire, it's really nice to meet you." I smiled shyly as Leo continued her presentation of manga.

A large part of me really hoped that what she said would turn out to be true.


	3. Hydroplane

STEPS © ChidoriShiori  
One Piece © Eiichiro Oda

** STEPS**

Disclaimer: I do not own One Piece. I only own this story, my character, and this here plot

–

**CHAPTER TWO**

**HYDROPLANE**

* * *

"H-Hey, guess how I got to s-school today?" I prodded excitedly, poking my pointer finger into Leo's shoulder. Leo didn't respond for a moment, reading her book quickly as she shoveled potatoes into her mouth.

I waited patiently for her to finish; the sound of rain and the rumbling of thunder was making itself known from outside the schools windows. The extra noise meant I had to talk louder, and that was something I never liked indulging in…I gazed outside into the storm. Another spark of lighting flew across the sky, and the windows in the lunchroom went bright. The thunder began its percussion immediately afterward.

Underneath the table, I was pulling on my thin yellow sleeves of my jacket, the feeling of butterflies going crazy in my stomach from joy, and a little bit of nervousness.

As Leo finished her potatoes, and slowly but surely put down her manga, I glanced at Alicia's blue and crowded table- and then back at colorful Leo nonchalantly.

"_**You shouldn't pretend you were looking at something else, Alicia knows you look at the table every chance you get.…" **_

I sighed at the thought, lowering my head in uneasiness.

"Wow. That's creepy." Cooed Leo, her bracelets jingling like bells as her wrists moved.

I smiled at Leo, her hair again in a different array of color patterns of blonde and greens, her always present orange was mixed in along with the new colors that I haven't seen in her hair for a while, those being neon yellow, and purple.

I let myself chuckle, realizing that Leo probably had her hair redyed about 8 different times in the past year and a half that I have known her.

I tilted my head to the side with a small smile, positioning my face so I could get a better read on the title of her Manga.

"Heh..."

'_I don't think I could even try to pronounce that.' _I thought humbly.

Leo lowered her book, a morbidly curious spark in her eyes as she looked at me. She was wearing a blue shirt with a black jacket over it, her jeans a few shades light than my own navy blue. I looked down at my legs, barely any curves, and still unmoving. I looked up and searched my friends face.

"So guess how I got to School Leo?" I asked again in delight.

She didn't even utter a word, her eyebrows shot down for a moment, and her mouth just dropped, a look of shock morphing onto her face. "Did you get a ride from Haruko on her moped?!"

I blinked while my shoulders tensed up, "Uh-um no...Who is that even?"

She gave me an incredulous look, and smacked her knee, "Haruko, from Fooly Cooly! I told you to watch it!"

I looked away bashfully, "I'm not sure I'm totally into what…You're into- Some of the things you recommend freak me out." I whined, putting my hands on my knees and fidgeting.

She heaved a sigh, "What have you watched then?"

"…"

I need to get back on track…Like, now. My eyes shifted in between Leo and the table, and then settled on the table, seeing as how it wasn't making me feel guilty.

"Arrhhw, have you watched anything?! Read anything?!" She swished her hands about in hysterics, narrowing her eyes and bending her head to the side. My eyes floated up to meet hers, and told her the truth.

"Not really, no…" I murmured, my hazel eyes now avoiding her own black eyes again.

Leo snapped her head away shaking her fist, faking tears. "Friend! I'm disappointed!"

My smile cracked and I buried my face in my hands, my elbows on the lunchroom table, Leo began her ramblings again, saying things were so "Unsymmetrical." all of a sudden...

I fussed with my white blouse and jacket, and decided to just come out with it-

"I got a car!" I blurted, the area around me went kind of silent, and instantly I felt my cheeks begin to burn. So I covered my frowning mouth with both my hands out of embarrassment.

"Oohh~ Really?" Asked Leo, ignoring the few sneers and stares of curious student's around us.

I nodded, and Leo's face resigned into an odd concentration, right before she grabbed my hands away from my face and held them to her wide grinning face. Were those sparkles around her head?

"Oi, Oi, did you get a Mustang?" Leo asked as she bounced up and down in her plain orange chair, the chair that she always grabbed when lunch started.

"N-no." I stuttered, I had to look away from her intense gaze and then glance back only to see her expression turn dark, a wave of disappointment hanging over her head.

"Ah- I see, how foolish of me-" My friend yet again droned off in a melancholy type tone, gazing off into the distance at nothing in particular.

I sighed while smiling apologetically; it really was a shame that this was the only time of day we could talk to each other. Other than Lunch I never really see her around school, only outside at the end of the day.

"You sure have been saying that a lot lately." I pointed out, a good natured smile widening on my face.

"Yooo dude, it's raining pretty bad-" Leo mumbled suddenly, her head shooting up to stare out of the large rectangular school windows. I hummed a little, and glanced out at the field and forest beyond the school, the rain collecting in puddles in the creased green of land.

My smile shrank, as I watched Leo squint at something I couldn't see in the horizon, her eyes darkening.

_Did she just now notice? This is the first big storm in a long time too…_

"Uh- It's been raining for a while now Leo...Uhm, but, I got this old rickety car that an old lady had. She was in a wheelchair too, you see. So it's already accustomed with the system to help me drive." I tapped my hands daintily on the table, and Leo finally returned her attention to the conversation.

Leo put her pointer finger on her chin, nodding sagely.

"Indeed. BUT- You need to be careful. Seeing how you haven't been driving in a while."

I nodded, taking her advice graciously, as leo's expression was getting a bit serious for once.

"I have been practicing with my dad.." I said quietly, reassuringly.

Leo leaned towards me, her colorful bangs sashaying by her cheeks, an odd expression on her face.

"Yeah, but have you been practicing in the _rain_?"

"N-no. I suppose not." I mumbled demurely.

And then Leo's voice went low and shockingly mature, "Promise me you'll be careful. Drive slow and all that, don't hydroplane off into a ravine or something….We don't need you getting hurt."

I blushed at her concern and nodded eagerly, giving her a soft smile.

"I promise." I whispered, messing with my hands again, as Leo glanced as Alicia's table.

My face grew puzzled, "Wha-" I began, but the school bell rang for next class and Leo stood up slowly still staring at Alicia's table, her expression serious.

Leo sighed almost sadly, her behavior really puzzling me as she nodded towards me and grinned. Before I could spin out after her, Leo was walking away with her books, waving and shouting a happy, "Ja-ne!~"

.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.

I remember when I met Alicia, her hair was golden, her eyes were a crisp hazel, and they were sharp, cunning, and so much unlike my own. I sat next to her in art class in 7th grade, and she used to ask for my pink oil pastel all the time. I didn't mind, I had a very similar personality to my little sister Penny. So I was shy and agreeable, and ever so passive and quaint.

Alicia would ask why I liked yellow so much.

"_It's like sunshine.."_

"_You know sunlight is actually colorless?"_

I loved the color yellow a lot, and still do and I found she happened to be the same way, only with pink. We would talk and got along well, but I knew just how much I was out of my league in being her friend, so I didn't reach out much.

It was until she did something simple that made me get a little courage. I would do things like waving at her bashfully in the hall when I would see her and other little things, and she would drop whatever she was doing to come and talk to me. I didn't think she would care, but she was nice when I met her, and she sought me out to seek my friendship, and her friends followed dutifully. Like Brianna, the beautiful red head who's hair was so pretty and straight, it made her face light up whenever she smiled…Brianna later dyed it all black around 8th grade.

Courtney, the blonde haired blue eyed girl who was vice captain for the pep squad was nearly always popping bubblegum bubbles. She tended to follow behind Alicia like a puppy, and she agreed with nearly everything she said and did. I had heard that when she found out Alicia was allergic to cats, Courtney gave her cat of 8 years away to some stranger so Alicia could spend the night at her house..

Pearla, was like an princess, her black hair long and tangle free, and whenever she would grab your hand in excitement at pep rallies, her nails would scratch you hard enough to draw blood.

They had their moments, and in 7th grade I found myself charmed enough by them to try new things that I would never even consider to do, and say things I would never say.

I huffed to myself as I wheeled my chair swiftly to the front of the school; a lot of students were already on the bus or heading home, a few were lingering in the halls, and of course it took me longer than anyone to get downstairs with that old elevator. The rain outside was still pelting into the pavement restlessly, and every window in the school had a view of the pavements abuse. I stopped at the door, hitting the cold glass with my knees as I shoved my left hand into the glass. With my practice I opened the heavy door far enough for me to roll through quickly and get in between the bullets of rain and the sidewalk.

I jumped in fright as I felt an unexpected spur of my wheels that made me lose grip on the handles of my chair. I whipped around, the rain beginning to soak my brown bangs into a darker shade as the droplets flew down from the sky sideways-

"A-Alicia?" I mumbled in recognition, feeling my cheeks go red.

She smiled, her similar hazel eyes twinkling.

"D-Did you highlight your hair?" I stuttered, gazing at a single bright orange streak billowing in-between her natural hair color.

She just smiled and nodded, "Should I roll you to your car? I hear there's going to be some flash flooding. I don't want you getting swept away or anything."

I blinked dumbly, "Y-you don't have to, really! I'm-"

A jerk of my chair sent me forward and Alicia began pushing me quickly through the rain towards the parking lot. An uneasy and embarrassed feeling was flushing through my stomach like fire. One thing being in a wheelchair was that when people pushed you around you felt your sense of control fade away, the speed, the turns, you felt like they were doing it all wrong when they had **your** chair in **their** control.

With both hands I clutched my knees as Alicia veered me towards the parking lot. The very thought of the most popular and prettiest girl in school was wheeling me, a handicap, to my car was killing me slowly.

_Why was she doing this?_

_I haven't talked to her since the accident-_

_**Why would she start talking to me now?**_

"How have you been doing?" She asked a bit loudly, to get her voice over the rain.

I sputtered for something to say, I drew a blank and settled for a simple; "I've been alright."

I looked around the parking lot placing my hands in my lap passively.

"You're cars that one right?" Asked Alicia calmly, pointing to a lonely maroon car in the handicap section of the semi empty lot. I nodded solemnly as Alicia gently rolled me to my car and strolled beside me to dig around in her big bag.

I blinked up at her, and took control of my wheels to sidle up to the side of the car. I pulled out my car key from my bag attached to my chair and unlocked the door nervously.

_How did she know I got a car?_

_How would she know this?!_

Alicia's smile had been weirding me out, it was different than I remembered as she pulled out a hot pink umbrella and opened it over me. I didn't smile, but I nodded and whispered a shy thank you.

"You back to your sweet old self? You so quiet. Brings back memories."

I paused slightly and ignored the comment while I creaked open my car door. Using my arms strength, I shuffled myself inside and hoisted my legs into the space where the pedals would be. I folded my chair and hoisted it easily passed my lap and into the empty passenger area where the entire passenger's seat had been removed to put my chair.

Alicia chuckled quietly and my lips formed themselves in a tight line as I buckled my seat belt.

"You're pretty strong in the arms. I bet you could do a proper cartwheel now." She added casually, not even flinching when another crack of thunder shot through the parking lot.

I attempted a small smile and tightly began to grip the bottom of the steering wheel.

Alicia closed the door to my car for me, I was so very close as to not roll down the windows and just drive away as fast as I could…

I ended up rolling the glass down anyway…Although very reluctant..

"Thank you Alicia, you didn't have to escort me..." I said softly, not even quite sure if she heard me or not, but she smiled broadly, the skin around her eyes crinkling and the dimples in her cheeks appearing.

_**Snap out of it- Quit acting all airy all of a sudden. You're **__**not**__** her frie-.**_

"It was no problem. Anything for friend…And by the way…" My eyebrows furrowed curiously, my face hinted with worry.

Her long and wavy hair was sticking to her forehead as she reached into her brown bedazzled bag again and pulled out what I least expected.

It was a fruit and it likened something to a big strawberry with a too ripe yellow coloring and a really lumpy appearance.

It could be real, but it certainly didn't look it.

"It's a very, **very**, rare fruit, and I heard it helps people in certain _ways_…You should eat it." She offered it to me, and I took it gently in my hands, staring at her in a confused way.

"A-are you sure that it is alright for me to have this?" I stuttered, and Alicia just pushed her hair out of her face, revealing that orange highlight of hers for a split second as she smirked.

She laughed lightly, and grasped my left hand through the window, giving it a squeeze as I regarded her with a startled look. I blinked with my eyes wide as Alicia grinned sweetly, the rain dripping from the edges of her pink umbrella.

"I want you to have it. In fact, when I first got it, I thought of you." She beamed, and retracted her hand, taking a few steps away from the car.

"W-why would you think of me?" I stuttered, my face contorting into a 'deer in the headlights' expression.

Alicia straightened her back, staring down at me with an almost smug look, "It's used for many different reasons Claire, just take it."

I clenched my teeth, resisting the urge to shudder with my whole body when she said my name.

She nodded towards the fruit, a small smile gracing her lips, "You should eat it as soon as you can."

I looked at the fruit, its texture almost so fuzzy in my hands it made my fingers tingle. I glanced back to find Alicia not where she was standing a moment ago. She was already walking away, her hair cascading down her back, her pink umbrella over her head...

"It spoils quickly." She added with a shout, and she waved her hand, not looking back. I shook my head quickly to clear my thoughts and I sighed. I placed the fruit on my lap as I started my car and rolled up my window.

"That was weird." I whispered to myself, switching gears and pushing lightly on the gas.

The large rectangular parking lot was bordered by a road, and a simple side walk separated them like a tiny moat. Without any traffic I left it the school's parking area easily. At a stop sign I took a glance back to the school's entrance, I was surprised when I saw Leo, practically a rainbow beacon against the dull gray of the schools doors.

She was waving at me, and what I assumed was a slight smile on her face or a blank expression I couldn't tell.

The orange highlights in her shone through on the top of her head, along with every other color of the rainbow. I paused just a second more to stare, a puzzled look on my face.

I couldn't help but think of Alicia…

-And not to mention the fruit in my lap.

The drive home was nerve-racking. My house seemed to be so far away, with road after road in my way spiraling out of nowhere in front of me my thoughts became even more fuddled. The sky was low and dark, and the rain sliding down the windows of my car didn't seem to get out of the way fast enough for me to comprehend where I was going. Every time a car would pass by, everything would flash, and every few seconds I would glance down at the fruit, feeling it jostle in my lap with every big puddle that slowed me down.

At first being a naive teenage that I was when I first got my car a year and a half ago during the accident, I never really thought of how a disabled driver actually drove their vehicles. I occupied my thoughts with this, or at least I tried, every now and again I compulsively analyzed the device on my wheel…A simple push up, push down system that let my thumb control my speed...

The desolate and narrow roads near my house had drainage systems for big storms; deep rifts on each side of the road trapped the water, and made it gush down the current in large streams.

Everything Alicia had spoken to me about was bothering me. I was repeating every bit and piece from that little encounter over and over in my head so I could try and make sense of it.

The car was silent. I didn't have the radio on to distract me, and even as I squinted through the rain, peering and out and leaning forward I was having a tough time seeing. I sighed, taking one hand off the steering wheel to mess with the green leaves of the fruit on its broad top. My mouth quirked to the side in contemplation.

To eat or not to eat…

"It's worth a try." I said suddenly feeling like it was worth a try, I took a glance at the road, and then took a large bite of the fruit.

…

"Mmpf!" I hacked with surprise and disgust, a large disgusting piece of fruit in my mouth was making horrible tasting saliva gather in my mouth.

I gulped with big swallow, feeling my throat actually expand and my eyes water a little.

I stuck out my tongue, "That was horrible! It's rotten for sure! Ew, ew, ew!"

I dropped the fruit in my lap as if it was red hot, and I began to flap my hand at my tongue; as if to shoo the taste away…

I pushed on the gas a little more with the hand device; my car was now slicing through the water, instead of sloshing and wasting gas.

"Ugh, this is a straight road, nothing will happen if I speed-"

A flash of brown on the driver's side made me flinch in fright and smack my free hand on the wheel. My front left bender clipped with something and it tumbled up the side of my car to bust through the driver's window, the shattering glass flew in and so did the rain, I shot my hand up feeling glass bounce off my arm and some pieces slicing it. The impact caused my car to veer, and I was jerked to my left with one hand grasping the wheel. I pulled on the wheel and attempted to switch directions to stabilize the car. I couldn't seem to do anything as my speed worked with the rain and the control I had on the wheels didn't work to create friction against the road.

I was, for not the first time in my life, Hydroplaning.

The left side of my face was wet and in an irritating way I couldn't tell if I had blood in my eyes or water. I tried to work out how to slow down; my breath was getting caught in my throat, and the car spinning like a bottle across the road.

I felt my world _tip_, and in a horrifying way I remembered how the car that Penny and I were in had rolled multiple times before it crashed on its passenger's side and tackled itself right into a light pole. My car seat had been leaning to far back I had to hold onto the steering wheel for dear life. The metal roof of the car busted inward tearing in two. Penny had screamed loudly in fear. The metal stretched and the longer piece pierced into my soft back stabbing and gracing my spine.

The maroon car I was in thankfully didn't flip and the nausea in my stomach balanced. My car swerved with enough shocking force to slam me toward the passenger side, and then in an instant my seat belt suddenly became too constricting. Hanging on for the ride with my wheels still spinning the car veered off and slid into the gaping rift, the car now slanting on an angle.

The sheer weight of the car was making it sink into the soft Earth and slink into the water, the opening of my window letting water pool in from the rain. I tried to regain my breath, spitting out the rain water that was pouring in, and trying to do something. I fumbled with my body at a irritating tilt, the water was coming in so quick there was already a pool of water on the passenger's side!

My car was beginning to choke, the tires gave their last spurt of energy as water leaked into the engine. My car dug itself further into the water, and the current was so strong it sliced past my car and shot off and over the tires and rushed into the gap of my window.

I closed my eyes, hacking through the onslaught of water. I felt a sudden shove on my shoulder and I felt it begin to burn horribly and tingle, the feeling spreading and rushing through my upper body. I knew at the back of my mind why my legs couldn't feel this, my lower half wasn't able to feel pain..

"_Oh god-"  
_

And I felt my body lurch and drop...

* * *

;A; R-reviews pwease?


	4. The wind on her back

STEP © ChidoriShiori  
One Piece © Eiichiro Oda

** STEPS**

**Disclaimer**: I do not own One Piece. I only own this story, my character, and this here plot

CHAPTER THREE

**.The Wind on her Back.**

* * *

_It may be cliche to say that Claire fell, but what else could be said about her lousy situation?_

_She dropped right out of her world, and into a new one._

_Many theories on what actually happened to her are kind of sketchy, but they all go a little something like this:_

_Claire had been teleported?_

_Was wished away?_

_Got reincarnated._

_Was misplaced._

_**Sent**__ there?_

_Claire fell._

_And she fell hard._

_To a place Claire Steele __barely__ knew._

_To a place where, just like in her world, was being hit by an enormous storm._

_Claire._

_Knocked unconscious._

_Afraid._

_Being thrown down to another Earth against her will.._

_Claire was experiencing a horrible, terrible, nightmare._

_A dream that imitated the feeling of her body falling…_

_She dropped like a limp doll through the air._

_She plunged downward, towards the ocean, with wind rushing up to push against her back; it tried to stop her from falling to harshly._

_It couldn't protect her._

_Claire woke up._

_In midair._

_She was jolted, because within her dream she finally hit the water below her great fall._

In reality, Claire woke up just in time to do exactly that.

"_Do you think she'll even survive from that fall?!" Questioned a teenage girl from under her stiff hold on a particularly large black umbrella. The rain came down in buckets, and the girl, simply standing in the middle of the flooding country road with her taller companion couldn't help but feel slightly nervous._

_And slightly worried…_

"_Oh, she'll be just fine," chortled her companion, the woman's tone light and carefree. _

_Almost condescending.._

"It'_s not like I dropped her off at the height of a 6 story building..It was 2 story, at best." She muttered casually, not bothering to hide a smirk._

"_You say that, but are you even sure about __**where**__ you sent her?" _

_Big curious eyes blinked up at the taller woman's authoritative figure, the sense of control and power seemed to make the air around her body still. _

_As if it were holding it's breath in preparation for her next move. _

_The woman in question inhaled deeply, simply staring at the sinking vehicle in the rising flood waters. Her dark and amused eyes glinted towards her subordinate holding the umbrella, her face a mixture of many emotions._

"_Even if she doesn't survive, who says we can't take more individuals from this world?"_

"_But this world has governments too! They can-"_

_A knowing glance was given towards the dark sky, "This worlds governments, if you can even call them that, are scattered. It is not as centralized and mighty like ours is. Nothing can stop the Marines. __**Or**__ the World Government~"_

_The woman laughed out right, her cloaked shoulders shaking, "-And as long as I'm alive, nothing can stop me."_

"SANJI! GO OUT AND SECURE THAT SUPPLY CRAFT, YOU HEAR?!" Roared Chef Zeff over another loud crash of thunder. The old man grimaced, gnashing his teeth as the waves of a powerful storm slammed against the Baratie's hull. The violent sways made everything in the ship scoot to the left with a squeaky, "UURRT."

Sanji, with a nicotine stick simply hanging in-between his lips, nodded once and hurriedly made his way towards the side entrance of the sea restaurant Baratie.

He scowled as he grasped the knob of the side door with a tight grip and heaved against it, one second he was pushing, and in the next he was pulling at the wooden door with the elements of a huge storm hitting his back fiercely. Sanji growled, getting his leg behind it and slamming it easily against the doorway with a crash.

"Shitty storm." Sanji grumbled, squinting through the rain and over the Baraties side rails, barely seeing the white, helpless, and very tiny supply boat bobbing as far as the rope tying it down could go.

3 more shitty waiters and beautiful waitresses had jumped ship two days before, making work a little bit tighter than usual, and not a lot of subordinates around to do the dirty work.

And by dirty work, Sanji meant tiny jobs, like securing the supply craft…

So Sanji was a tad irritated, he had been busy making a perfect soup to compliment his assorted main dishes, and then he had been called out to do this?

Patty should be out here, not Sanji, that's for damn sure.

With a heave of a sigh and a few more moody mumbles, Sanji struggled towards the railing, sparing a few glances at the angry sky as he reached down to grab the taut rope.

"SANJI!" Patty's voice cried, making Sanji jump a bit at the unexpected wail, Sanji glared towards the direction of Patty's voice. He saw the cook in question carrying huge cans of trash under his arms, looking quite angry himself.

The assistant chef didn't trifle himself by looking at Patty for longer than necessary, and he pulled at the supply crafts rope with all his might.

"SANJI! DIDN'T YOU HEAR ME?!"

"WHAT?!" Sanji snapped, giving Patty the usual glare.

"BE SURE TO SECURE THAT THING CLOSE! THIS STORM MIGHT SEND THE WHOLE PLACE A CAPSIZING!"

Sanji, a little more than just irked yelled, "YOU THINK I DON'T ALREADY KNOW THAT!? SHITTY COOK!"

"WHAT DID YOU SAY?! YOU THINK YOU CAN TALK TO ME LIKE THAT, YOU'VE GOT ANOTHER THING COMING TO YA SANJI!"

"WHAT CAN YOU DO?! I THINK ALL I'VE SEEN YOU DO IS BURN FOOD!"

"WHY YOU-"

A desperate shriek was heard just towards Sanji's right, interrupting Patty in mid yell.

Sanji gave a shout of surprise as he whipped his head around quickly, the action and the scream of a woman made him inadvertently release his hold on the supply crafts rope.

A woman's form indeed was just barely seen from the glow of numerous bolts of lighting, her figure was shadowed against the sky, and her blouse flittering against the wind. Her hands were reaching desperately for the sky, but the ocean greedily grabbed her and consumed her whole with a loud splash.

"AN ANGEL!~~" Sanji screeched, and just as Patty had realized what had happened, Sanji's shoes were off and his jacket was thrust towards Patty's face. He blubbered incoherently, and Sanji boldly kicked off into the hectic waters towards where the girl had fallen.

Riiight when the supply crafts rope snapped…

-.-.-.-.

-.-.-.-.

I was screaming before I could even process what was going on.

I was falling, dropping, and my mind couldn't seem to work fast enough. I felt rain, and heard thunder lash out loudly all around me, it vibrated the air violently, and I screeched again in fright.

The air chilled me, but I hit something even more wet and shockingly cold.

I felt Deja vu, but with more pain.

The pain in my back.

The pain.

I was to shock to realize how much I hated it.

Too familiar.

Hurts.

My eyes widened.

The sting of sea salt and the sway of an angry ocean.

_I should be nowhere near the ocean._

_Or a lake._

I was sinking, but I was too distracted to move.

I heard a splash of something against the waves.

Sounds so close.

My mind sobered itself on the sound.

What fell?

What fell like I did?

_Where am I? _

_What's happening?_

Can't breathe. Can't breathe.

Pins and needles.

The prickling feeling of numbness residing.

It was spreading, throughout my lower back, all the way to my toe's.

Can't take it.

I was sinking and rocking in the dark water, deeper, deeper.

My ears popped.

It was getting cold and dark.

I screwed my eyes shut.

Time was slowing down.

I tried to flail against the water.

Choking.

My back!

My hand.

A solid grip was on it.

Warm.

My air.

Gone.

A tug upward.

Towards heat.

Am gonna-

Pass out-

…

* * *

REVIEW.


	5. Disarray

STEPS © ChidoriShiori  
One Piece © Eiichiro Oda

** STEPS**

**Disclaimer**: I do not own One Piece. I only own this story, my character, and this here plot

Don't forget to review ladies and gentlemen!~

**CHAPTER FOUR**

**.DISARRAY.**

* * *

I woke up to the sound of someone choking and gasping...

It was bothersome at first, annoying even, but then I registered how my lungs weren't expanding enough, that my throat was hurting, and that my back was tingling with pain. I was aware that my clothes were sopping wet, one side of my body was warm with contact, and the other was chilled from what I registered as exposure to _very_ cold wind.

It was that recognition, that realization of my condition, that led me to the source of pain and actually feel it in all of its fury. It wasn't foreign, but the pain was still frightening, it idolized the fact that your body can easily detach itself from your own mind, making you oblivious to your own wounds..

If you woke up from a never ending darkness to realize that, for instance, you were in a ticking time bomb of a car. How do you know you're not supposed to move if you can't even feel the very tips of your fingers?

Your body plays horrible tricks, and can make a person believe that the pain you're feeling doesn't belong to you.

The constant splats and pitter-pattering on my arms and body were small bullets of chilled rain, and for some reason the smell of salt water was attacking me. Why the smell of salt water, I couldn't tell, but the rambling thoughts and worries that were running amok inside my head were already causing havoc, bringing up a flurry of emotions.

"Are you okay?" A warm voice washed over me, like a giant wave, like the thunder that was on a rampage all around me. However, the coughs were constricting me, I yearned for more air. So when I received the chance to take it, I gasped and clawed it in and then shoved the oxygen back out in rapid succession. My mind somehow came out of the fog through that wild process.

I blinked my eye's open a few times, but my eyelids felt heavy and the water stung, but I didn't bother with wiping away the rain. It was no use when I was lying on my back. I just squinted through a blur of shapes till my sight cleared. Till I saw an angry gray sky...

Everything was too surreal when I stared at it, the sounds I was hearing were recognized more quickly than the images I wasn't necessarily ready to see, and it was probably because everything was _moving_.

I looked up at the cloud's, at a worried face of the out of focus man above me, the wooden paneling, the rain falling down and finally-

A great, big, and incredibly vast ocean.

Angry, violent, and powerful: that is what the rolling water looked like and what I knew it to be.

Shaky breathes, half sobs, and coughs caused my throat to clutch and my lungs want to pop. My emotions plagued me, I couldn't find it in myself to calm down.

I wrenched my head to the side, cheek laying in the cold puddles of water that gathered on the wood. My body was aching so much that my cut bloody arms, stiff torso, and cold skin crawled and prickled. I struggled to ignore all of that, and block it out, till only emotions raged so strongly that I felt like something was trying to break free of my chest, but I only barely succeeded. There were my emotions battling with each other, but I could feel the water; everything was welling up, building higher and higher in my stomach and lungs, in the very sea itself. It's only goal was to come crashing down in limited amount of time. It made the pure shock of it all settle deep in my bones as I stared at the ocean with the rising and dropping waves, every fiber of my being soaked through.

It was then, where I took a giant breath to gasp at it all that the coughing began again. It started as a tickle, and then my chest gave a little heave ho, and I hacked uncontrollably, my eyes squeezing themselves shut. My hands finding their way to my mouth in that deeply ingrained habit of mine.

"_Breathe!" _

A voice barked, the man again, a slightly different one in features in comparison to that old memory, but the blonde hair struck me deep.

I felt an upheaval of pressure in my lungs and stomach and I knew what was coming next.

Water spurted out of my mouth, very bitter in taste, rising up in my throat and sometimes, back down again as I involuntarily swallowed.I remembered vaguely the warmth and the feeling of being pulled up in the water, but I couldn't complete any thought process after that.

I could barely understand what had happened **before**.

The air made a sharp wheeze sound as tried to gulp it greedily into my lungs, the lightheaded and dizzying feeling from the lack of oxygen was fading, as I heard more muffled encouragement.

I was being held closer, towards more heat and an almost comforting smell of smoke, it made my nose wrinkle and my teeth start to chatter with the winds licking past. I was at sea, in 1 out of the 7, and in an angry storm.

I understood that once I had been wrenched from unconsciousness and breathing again, the stinging pain of regurgitating inhaled salt water had finally brought me to a heightened sense of clarity and awareness. I was finally coming back around.

Although, all I could really do was watch and listen.

"Is she okay?"

"What happened?"

"OI, BACK OFF PATTY! I GOT HER!"

"SANJI, PATTY, JUST SHUT UP AND SET HER DOWN INSIDE. SHE'LL CATCH COLD!"

My breathing had barely relaxed to a steady rhythm, but I still felt at a loss; like I was still hurting somewhere, but it wasn't making me scream out.

Was it even pain?

Or just strong uncomfortable feelings?

I felt myself being lifted gently from the cold wood, all the muscles in my arms and upper back clenching and relaxing in rapid succession. My head lolled into the coat of this man holding me. It was coal black in color, and he smelled strongly of warm smoke, and spicy sea food.

It was a comforting scent, but to get a better hold on me, I was jostled. I sucked in deep breath to make whoever was moving me stop, and with my back moving I shuddered violently in pain and yelped out.

"S-SET ME DOWN! I-" Confused movement and more voices, they were asking if someone named Sanji did something accidental to hurt me.

"We need to get her inside though-"

"Be gentle, something must be broken!"

Protests bickered back and forth and suddenly light came to blanket around me, the dripping sound of rain distanced itself.

Mumbles of half heard questions came forth from all kinds of directions.

Cracking open my eyes, I first saw a black fabric against my face and fancy restaurant decor in my peripheral.

"Here! Let's set her in the kitchen!" Yelled a bossy female voice.

And then I heard multiple protests all at once.

"YOU'RE CRAZY! WE'RE NOT GANNA TAKE THIS URCHIN TO THE KITCHEN TO GET TREATED!"

"BULL SHIT WE AREN'T! THERE'S PLENTY OF TOWLES IN THERE, AND WE CAN WARM EM BOTH UP TOO! SANJI AND THIS GIRL ARE SOPPING WET!"

A rumble and blissful sigh came from the person holding me, "AH!~ CHI-CHWAN, YOU DO CARE!~"

An irritated sound was emitted from the woman, "Shut up Sanji.."

"NO NO, LET'S TAKE HER TO THE DINNING ROOM!" Insisted a hoarse man's voice, his suggestion gaining more shouts of support than the woman's did.

"I SAY THE KITCHEN!" The lady barked again, maybe even louder than before, and I shut my eyes tight when I saw her glance at me.

"HAH! WE LOST THE SUPPLY CRAFT, MAYBE WE CAN COOK HER UP WITH SOME SAU-"

I was suddenly jolted yet again with my back stretching involuntarily, and I very nearly cried out.

My eyes shot open to look up at the man holding me, and the movement halted suddenly, the mans expression showing worry as he probably remembered he was supposed to be careful with me. I let out a shaky breath I didn't realize I was holding, and the pain ebbed away stubbornly. I stared up at this man for a moment, unabashed by how long I held his attention towards me. I probably would have looked weird staring at the ceiling or anywhere else, so I looked into his eyes for the time being, and blinked my own slowly in thought.

So he did have incredibly yellow hair..

He had a little bit of a goatee as well, strong jaw line, clear eye, it was focused and dark. The other was hidden by a shock of hair, but his one visible eyebrow went up and curled inward to make a perfect swirl, like nothing I'd ever seen.

Someone in the crowd of cooks made some kind of comment agreeing to cooking me.

"WHY YOU! YOU CAN'T TREAT A LADY LIKE THAT!" Sanji's head shot up, breaking eye contact and he threw more insults. I felt him raise me up a little more against him to thrust a leg up in the air to kick at the man in question. I looked down, stared at his jacket now. This was the man, the person that had saved me, but there was something in me still, distracting me. A feeling was nagging at me, and I was being pulled away from the bickering that was all around me. I was almost too involved in myself to listen closely.

It was a feeling that I haven't felt in a long time. It wasn't an emotion, but it bothered me physically, something was different. I just knew it.

Sanji curled his arms around me more securely, my wet clothes making me cold and sleepy. My vision was starting to blur again, I tried listening to what the cook's were discussing again.

"I WAS KIDDING, BUT IF WE _REALLY_ NEEDED-"

"WHAT IS THIS? YOU'RE NOT THINKING ABOUT THE CUSTOMERS HERE!" Growled a new male voice.

There was a confused pause between the people speaking.

"-SHE'D BE A PATHETIC APPITIZER AT BEST!" He humphed, and that seemed to earn a great rise out of this Sanji person.

_Stop moving. Stop moving._

"URRAGGH, PATTY THAT'S NOT THE POINT!" Yelled the blonde holding me, it didn't take much to gather that he was a very passionate person.

"OI!" Shouted a gruff and authoritative voice from the gathering crowd of what seemed to be cooks and a few waiters and one waitress.

"Sorry, Cheff Zeff." said one particularly guilty sounding man with glasses.

I didn't bother moving my head to see this Chef Zeff, he had spoken up some ways behind me. I didn't bother to move at all, even in an attempt. He seemed like a boss and so the boss of this _Restaurant_ he must be.

The pain was settling from being moved, my breathing was loud, but I at least paced myself, focusing on hearing my breathing, and a distant heart beat of the man holding me.

Or maybe I was mistaken, and it was my own, but at that thought- it didn't really matter, it soothed me, and made me go ever more slack with exhaustion.

"Don't take her anywhere just yet, Sanji. Chi, go to the kitchen and fetch some towels. Patty go get the front entrance. Everyone else get back to work!" I heard a loud smack from Zeff's hand on a table, the force made what sounded like plates and glass rattle noisily. He was obviously making a point.

The man known as Patty and a few other cook's blubbered, "The front entrance sir?"

"While you all were a yelling and a screamin', there was a knock on the door.."

Patty's voice was beginning to get all mumbly and grumbly to me as he said something else, I squeezed my eyes shut, straining to hear.

I heard Chi say something like a curse word and I heard her footsteps cracking loudly against the wood as she left.

Sounds eventually evened out a little as my ears popped, but it was still a little bit like my head was underwater (Again), or I was suddenly in the show Charlie Brown.

"Looks like the marines are here, and I don't know if they want **food** or _something_ else." Said Patty ominously.

Were people looking at me?

"You mean- are you implying they're after the girl?"

"The girl?"

Yeah, they're looking at me.

After those questions it got silent after Chef Zeff gave a irritated sigh, and the air became tense from the bubbling questions that were rising in me and everyone else in the room.

"..."

This time around a more audible knock banged on the door. I flinched against Sanji's jacket as the sound of the rain and knocks cut through the silence.

"I-I don't know why they would want me." I spoke as clearly as possible, but still probably too quiet. Sanji heard, leaning his head toward me as soon as I opened my mouth, definitely eager to listen and repeat.

I wanted to smile, and give me thanks to him. I suddenly felt grateful at my luck. These people seemed good natured.

"She says she doesn't know why the marines would want her." Said Sanji.

"Well damn..."

"Barlow! Did you ever pay that damn fine o' yours?!"

"GET OFF MY BACK WILL YA?! I PAID!"

"Then what do the marines want?! Patty you should answer the door! NOW."

"I'm getting it now, you ungrateful Swab!"

Sanji was looking down at me for the third time, only now his expression held curiosity and worry.

I sighed.

Okay. Lets get the facts straight.

I'm at sea, and the marines are at this restaurant. This could be a huge misunderstanding, but now that I've got the idea in my head that Marines want something with me. It's not exactly a plausible idea, but it is possible. The notion itself was bringing a sinking feeling to my stomach, probably churning the salt water already inside it like the waves that were rocking this restaurant.

"Why would the marines want Angel-San?" Sanji asked defensively, his grip on my legs and shoulders became tighter in a somewhat comforting way. I looked up at him blearily shaking my head, while Patty went to the door with a set of keys.

Skepticism was laced thick in the surrounding cooks voices, "Her names Angel?"

Sanji glanced down at me, and all of a sudden I found it hard to speak, my throat clammed up, and I gripped his jacket in a vice like grip.

I shook my head again.

"Sanji, it's rude to give people names of things that don't even exist."

Sanji growled stubbornly, "Angel's do too exist!"

The pounding on the door became incessant now.

"MARINES! OPEN UP!"

Patty must have opened the door because I heard a loud creak, and the sound of rain was now clearly prattling against the wood, it was no longer a muffle and the rumbling thunder was no longer a grumble, but a shout.

"Where is the current owner of this establishment? We would like to speak with him!" The voice was stiff, tough, he sounded like a stereotypical football coach.

"I'm right here! Whatcha want? We're busy here!" Grouched Zeff, obviously a little peeved.

The Marine didn't hesitate, "We're looking for a girl. She is a fugitive, and needs to be taken into custody."

I twisted my head now to look at this marine with short brown hair, slightly taller than this blonde Chef Zeff with a huge chef's hat, but not as intimidating. While looked at him up and down, I realized Zeff had a peg leg. I didn't really know what to think about it, but I was glad he could walk so confidently.

"We ain't got no fugitive girl here! So go away! No solicitors."

Was he covering for me?

"Sir, we have an exact description of the girl we are looking for. She had medium length brown hair, brown eyes, and she has been deemed to be...disabled. She has been confirmed to be unable to walk."

Other than the first and last couple of facts, my eyes are _Hazel._

I automatically felt anger rise up in me, from this very mans tone and face. It was a fact that I had only for a year or so been dealing with personally, but it still made me bite my cheeks in frustration. That voice. The one that said, 'disabled' like it was something to pity. Like how some people take offense to the comments: "fat", "skinny", or "ugly". It was a fact you had to see and realize every day, but it still stung, and never so hard as to actually admit.

Maybe it wasn't even the voice that people usually used, but maybe it was the damn pause.

People sometimes could never spit the word out.

"_Mrs. Steele, Mr. Steele, I'm afraid I have some bad news. You're daughter is...She...Well..."_

**'I hated that doctor.'**

"_The rehabilitation process will be hard..."_

"_Especially if you agree to the surgeries to help heal you...Uhm."_

"_But you'll make it through..."_

**'That nurse always paused too..'**

**Pathetic, ignorant, drama queens.**

It was a pet peeve, one that I had gained with my injury, but was also accompanied by a somewhat brutal sense of honesty.

If I could deal with it. The disablement itself, then the least anyone could do was say it.

**'Straight to my face.'**

Cheff Zeff didn't pause, and I looked upon the mustached man with respect.

"So you're telling me you're looking for a disabled criminal. And she can't walk? You do realize, _**boy**_, we're out in the middle of East Blue."

_East Blue?_

"It is not exactly a- a **chase,** _**sir**_, of any kind. We need to find her, and to word it carefully, we have been given very precise and tall orders, from our higher ups. We will follow them exactly."

This doesn't make sense. It doesn't make any type of logical sense.

_I don't know where I am. I- I fell from the sky. Barely saved. I'm on a restaurant out at sea. The marines are after me. I'm apparently a criminal. Why would they call me a criminal!?_

"Well do you know her name? What does this girl go by? What did she do?" Asked Zeff gruffly, he was obviously getting short with this Marine, but he was asking all the right questions.

"Angel-San." Sanji was whispering to me, somewhat shielding me now from the marine's sight, "What's your name?"

His one eye was serious, but kind. I couldn't lie to him, not after what he did, and I shouldn't have to.

The poor guys hair was still wet, as were his clothes like mine, and if I was cold I'm sure he was. He saved me from a watery death, and if I knew his name. He needed to know mine.

"My name-" I croaked, my throat still unbelievably sore.

"Her name-"

"**-is Claire Steele."**

Sanji blinked at me in slight surprise, and glanced up at the marine. Sanji's face became serious.

"_She has been convicted for murder, and needs to be taken in for protective custody, and if she is not found. Alive. There will be consequences."_

I inhaled sharply, barely any kind of wheeze left in my chest.

Now this was getting out of hand. This was all wrong. Like some stereotypical nightmare I couldn't wake up from.

"We don't know any girl called Claire Steele!" yelled Zeff, his arms crossing tightly across his chest. "Sir we have been given exact coordinates of her suspected location, and that girl over there fits her description perfectly. We shall take her into custody for questioning." The marine pointed towards me and two sopping wet officers with a white stretcher filed out from the open doors of the restaurant and marched forward. Zeff was pushed aside with a insulted guffaw.

And I couldn't help but think of how those officers must have been standing outside the entire time. Waiting.

My stomach felt like a worn punching bag, as everyone's gaze was on me now.

"Murderer? Really?" Grumbled one cook from the crowd. Others followed with similar comments, but they didn't seem scared, or impressed... I failed at the right words to describe them, but then again I don't think they needed to be said.

I don't think these Chef's are normal, from their talk it seems like murder was a regular thing, they're brushing off a murder conviction?

I was surely dreaming. I looked up at Sanji with a sudden unadulterated fright. The marines were here, and Sanji held me tight.

I wanted to cry.

I wanted to go home.

"This lady is injured! You can't take her out of here and risk harming her." Growled Sanji, obviously his values were deeply rooted. He didn't budge, and I certainly didn't want him to.

The two marines were expressionless, although one was reaching inside his pocket.

"We will administer a sedative."

I bit my lips to keep from screaming.

The other marine spoke up, "She won't feel any pain."

I was beyond panicking now, I was scared, I didn't know when I would see my family again.

Mom and dad.

Dad and mom.

Penny-

Penny, Penny, Penny.

If I could see anyone it would be her.

I took a deep breath, looking up at Sanji who's face was soured in thought. "Thank you for saving me." I mumbled, as if I was telling him he had a nice tie on. Which he honestly did.

Zeff still had his arms crossed, looking lethally pissed. "Sanji, let her be taken into custody. If they got it wrong they got it wrong. We can't get involved in this."

"God damn you old man!" Barked Sanji, looking furious now, he looked down upon me and his eyes softened.

One Marine took me from Sanji's grip, who honestly growled in response, but this mans arms being freshly wet and chilled from the rain made me just want to try to block everything out.

I was lowered onto the stretcher, not the first stretcher I've been on in my life, but probably the most shameful.

I blinked up at the ceiling, brown in color, and the one marine squatted next to me and stuck me with a needle without hesitation. "Ow."

"Ungentlemanly shitty bastards!" Sanji said angrily, glaring at the other marine that was still standing.

"Oi, she fell from the sky right? What the hell is this then?!" Asked one of the cooks. The two marines stood at opposite ends and picked up the stretcher at the same time, hoisting me up in the air and walking briskly out to the front of the restaurant. A big blue ship swayed in the glowing distance as lightning bolted through the air, more marines were lined up on the dock, things got even more blurry, more scary.

"Angel-san!" Yelled Sanji, his voice already sounded distant, and twisted. As soon at the rain hit my face, surprising me and causing me to wrench my head to the side. I held the gaze of the ocean again, and realized something very important...After that, things went into disarray of shapes, colors, thunder, and sleep.

"_Oi, wake up." _

I did.

Although very groggily, I shifted on my back. The voice was near me; calm, male, and clear.

"Wake up."

_**'Wake up Alan, wake up.'**_

I was getting there, my thoughts rushing around and the important ones, the most confusing, were slamming into me. Was it all a dream! Had I had gotten into a wreck, passed out, and was I actually in the hospital and my parents were there beside me? Were they worried? They can scold me to all hell and I won't care. I want to be home.

Could bawl to them and say how I was sorry?

That's what I would see and face when I opened my eyes?

I want that. I want it so bad I can nearly smell the disinfectant scent of hospital sheets.

It could be like last time, but without the heart slapping, smashing, and crushing loss of Penny's death.

It could just be a mistake, a mistake that I could blame on the rain and the _thing_ that hit my car, I could give up driving for a couple of years.

But I didn't smell disinfectant, I didn't hear the beep of a heart monitor.

I smelled salt again, and heard the lapping of waves.

"W-where am I?" I asked immediately, the first half of my sentence was lost to the dryness of my throat. Cracking my eyes open to find no bright light, no clean cotton sheets of my local hospital, no family. I sighed in dissapointment.

It was dark, and out of the corner of my hazel eye's I saw dark metal bars, and a figure of a person.

"You're on a marine ship. 'er name's Dementia, and you arrived here uh, 6 days ago girlie." It was a voice of an man, it must be only a few feet away.

"Ship? Oh god, no no no.." There it was. That feeling again. Dread.

My sight focused, and I hastily glued my eyes to everything I saw, swiping over them back and forth in quick succession.

I was laying on a cot, a very musty one, that seemed to be too lumpy to be made out of anything really soft and too soft to be made out of a stone slab. I turned my head slowly to the upper right, through more bars. What seemed to be surrounding me was a cage. A jail cell. And a man with jet black hair and a scruffy beard was sitting in the jail cell over, leaning against the wooden wall that his cot and mine were up against, his arms were crossed tight.

"They musta given' ya sunfin REAL good kid. I've never seen anyone asleep for that long..Cept for dead people."

"6 days? What was I _doing_ the entire time?!" I spoke brokenly, the airy, near sob sound made me swallow and stay silent for a few seconds to keep control. I moved my stiff arms up above my head, and saw that my left hand and wrist was bandaged with about inch thick white wrappings, probably from the cuts I had received from the broken window of my car.

I realized the salty smell that was sticking to my skin was from sea water, and the grimy feel was probably from sweat. I ran a shaky hand through my hair, and it wasn't an easy task. My fingers got caught in the strands and simply would not brush though. I had a huge knot at what seemed to be at the very back of my head, the rest was tangled, matted, and limp. This wasn't pretty, not at all.

I licked my lips, and tasted salt. I tried smacking them, and they felt sticky from what seemed like dried blood, and when I dragged my teeth across my the tender skin of my lips, they snagged and tugged. My lips were bone dry, and what was worse is that I had no lip gloss or balm. I cautioned myself to not open my mouth too wide or to smile.

"They had you in the infirmary for the first 5 days. Liquid diet I think, and then transported your here last night. It's noon now." His voice drawled slowly, like he wasn't in a rush to tell me information. It was annoying.

I stayed silent and simply stared at my left hand in facination.

"Can you sit up?" The man asked, "I like to talk to people face tah face. Plus, when you were asleep you didn't move. At all. Probably need to stretch or it'll be even harder to move later."

The man looked about late thirties, and had the style some guy out of the movie Grease had with his hair slicked back.

"I dunno if I can.." I mumbled, moving slightly and not feeling any pain, I deemed it safe. I pressed my palms against the rocky cot and lifted my self up fairly easily, my strength in my arms made it quick and simple. I tried to keep my back as straight as possible, and when in a brace for about 6 weeks of your life, is was aactually an easy to do.

I heard no alarming cracks, creaks, or pops in my back. That was definitely a good sign if I ever heard one.

I shifted a little more and leaned my back against the wooden walls of this ship gingerly, and glanced at this new "friend".

"Whats'er name kid?" He asked quietly, his face the essence of a the word chill.

I straightened my shirt out, vaguely thinking of how this was the same blouse I fell into an ocean with, and ultimately slept in for 6 days.

Ew.

"My name is Claire Steele. Uhm, what's yours?" My voice was clear, solemn, and quite calm for the moment. I felt tired, so maybe that was why I wasn't ranting and raving. I simply didn't feel like raising a fuss, and it wasn't like I could do anything prominent to help my situation. My muscles possessed a certain slack, yet tense, constricted feeling. I ached when I moved, and in my face my cheeks and forehead felt tight, like when you've been crying for hours on end. At least my emotions were under control, because after all I needed to be level headed in this, and if there wasn't something I liked about myself, it was my control. It was surprising since there was utter hysteria and loss affecting my mind and thought process still, but I knew if I talked and kept my mind busy, I could avoid breakdown.

"M'names Jeb." Said, well, Jeb.

"Jeb?"

"Jeb the web."

I paused, somewhat troubled and ill at ease, he seemed to have made that name out of thin air.

"It's an old nickname. 'Used to walk into spider webs all the time as a kid." He blinked slowly, convincingly, his hands folded in his lap.

I looked for something to say since silence tended to follow quickly after awkward introductions. I commented weakly, "That's interesting." I mumbled, like I had marbles in my mouth.

Jeb chuckled, and looked at me through the strange black bars, and when I say strange, I mean brittle looking. The metal was weird and shiny, like smooth stones were imbedded, but also rough looking. I noted to myself that it must be made of many different materials to not rust or something. "Heh, it's not as interesting as what these marines are saying 'bout you."

"I'm more interested in who they said I killed- not myself. Rumors are terrible things after all, and since I don't even know where I am, I'd rather have more information on the basics, then gossip." I grumbled, closing my eyes tiredly.

"You don't know who you killed or where you are? Memory loss?"

I stilled, but breathed in one deep breath and sighed, moving my legs in front of me by lifting each one and placing it in a comfy position. Jeb seemed confused by that and looked at me curiously. To be honest, things were quiet. The boat creaked, but I didn't hear any distant voices, or shouts, only the ship herself. I spoke regularly, without fear of being told to be quiet, or speak up.

"I don't get...Why I'm here. What happened to me is strange..And I remember every memory. In great detail..Nothing is out of place."

"Girlie, they're saying some scary things.." Jeb's voice grew sort of hollow, there was just a hint in his voice. Like he said something like this before,recited it to himself, or it was something he was tired of saying? I couldn't put my finger on it as I sighed, I wanted to get off the topic of myself. I gave in and asked the obvious.

"What kind of things are they saying about me

Jeb crossed his legs and got out a cigarette from his black shirt pocket, the cigarette was wrinkled, twisted, and it was long and lumpy. I speculated it was a joint as he plopped it in his mouth, who the heck knows what he could be smoking, at this point I couldn't care less!

"Oh, the usual. That filtered down stuff that lackeys get from only the big guns. The kind of info that's hard to believe.."

_**'Dumbass idiot. Give me real answers.'**_

"I don't- I don't understand, a lot of things have happened to me..Jeb, they said I killed someone, and that's why they're arresting me, but- I've never even stolen anything in my life! Other than cookies from the cookie jar. I don't-"

In a gruff tone, he cut me off. "They're also saying you've got a devil fruit power. Do you know about that?"

I blinked, "A devil fruit..?"

Job stared at me for a moment, almost judging my reaction, and then glanced away. My eyes bored into the back of his head, eager for him to give me more information, and take me out of the dark. "They're shippin' us straight to some prison. Or in your case you might be sold to somebody in a human auction. Or to some higher up facility. Maybe Impel Down. Who the hell knows. Higher ups keeps things peaceful, but they keep lots of secrets.."

"W-what? Listen, I don't think you understand..I'm not from here. Exactly.. They know me exactly, but I've never done anything wrong that wasn't...Dealt with by my local law enforcement. I shouldn't be hunted or anything. These marines even knew were I was. Someone gave them directions! Right towards me! Even though I don't know where** I** even am. I'm out of the loop of things by miles or light years!"

Jeb seemed to frown and chew thoughtfully on his cigarette, he finally got out a lighter. "Do explain Claire.."

Oh now he did it. He asked the million dollar question. The question that allowed me to talk it ALL out. All of my frustrations and musings that I had so far thought of.

Psychologist's and shrinks had to love my rants, I gave so much information is such a short amount of time, it was always explained back to me as a good thing. My short term psychologist Dr. Walker, that I saw in the hospital, had told me it may be brash, but rants, letters, art works, or music done while in times of stress may as well be windows into someone's thought processes. Rants were raw and fleeting in information, where thoughts took over and feelings that have been kept buried finally come clawing angrily out of their false graves.

I took a deep breath..

"I have no idea what East Blue is, or where. I ate a fruit before I got in my crash though. It was weird and tasted bad. Is that a devil fruit? Anyway, I don't know what Impel down is. Is it like down syndrome? It sounds like it. Where I'm from we don't sell people! I don't know where I am. I'm from a place that is totally different from **here**. What happened to me was, I was driving my car, something hit me, I passed out after water comes in like the great flood. I wake up and I'm in air. Falling! I see the sky, and I hit water. It hurt, like a big back flop. Then I'm being saved by some cook with a curly eyebrow, and my back is hurt. Again! Then the marines are saying I killed somebody! Who did I kill exactly?! I wouldn't know because it's like they kidnapped me! I don't-"

A door slammed towards my left, past my eyesight of bars, boxes, and a hallway. I was ripped from my thoughts, and from the shadows of the short hallway came a uncontrolled laugh, it sounded evil and cynical. I turned my head towards Jeb, seeking answers about who it was, when a tall imposing figure of a man walked towards my cell.

A marine. The captain himself from the looks of his long coat and hat, peered at me with amusement twisting his face.

I looked up curiously, in confusion, the captain and I looked towards Jeb as he shifted somewhat nervously in his cell.

"Did you get some information? I heard a bit from up deck HAHAHA! Sounds like the most far fetched garbage ever!" A man with square features, arrogant eyes, and a loud voice. He seemed like a straight up '**bastard', **_and he probably was._

I shuddered, and whipped my head to look at the Captian, and then back to Jeb again, who ignored me. My brain didn't want to recognize or think about anything anymore, again. My dumb personal tricks, those self taught defenses.

_If you don't want to hear, or think, or feel. _

_-Don't listen, and go blank, for none of it is real._

Jeb tricked me..Even though he didn't have to! If these people just ASKED I would have told them everything, even my favorite color.

**'It's yellow.' **

Who the hell were these people anyway? '**God damnit!'**

I couldn't process anyone's motives anymore for even talking to me!

**'They're jerks.'**

Jeb stood up and calmly walked out of his cell, it wasn't even locked?

Would they lock mine? I couldn't exactly WALK OUT.

"I found out some interesting things sir, but you came in far too soon." Said Jeb offhandedly, taking a big puff of his cigarette/joint.

The Captain laughed loudly again, making me flinch, and I had a stare down with my shoes.

"Ah, I'm not patient enough, and besides we'll be docking in a few days. I wanted to find some things out! Girlie! You seriously don't know who you killed?! HAHAHA!"

"Captain Vorik.." Said Jeb cautiously..

"THEY'RE TALKING ABOUT YOU FOR A REASON GIRL! YOU'RE WANTED FOR THE MURDER OF YOUR SISTER!"

I snapped my head up, every muscle in me going taut. I couldn't speak.

With every doctor, psychologist, bedside nurse, rehabilitative nurse, mom, dad, police officer, deputy, Leo.

Leo especially.

"_That crash wasn't **your** fault."_

"_Penny's death was an accident."_

I would even say it to Myself. To make me feel better.

I-

The captain paused for some reason in his expression, it no longer held humor, his smile went slack and his eyes slid upward, as if he were listening for something. After a moment Jeb did the same thing, only he was looking more surprised and somewhat scared.

"Is that her devil fruit power sir?!" Asked Jeb, who was suddenly in a panic; and only then did I hear it.

Some kind of high pitched whistle, getting louder and louder.

"No you idiot! THATS CANNON FIRE!" Roared the Captain, and before I could even realize it, both Jeb and the Captain were down on the ground. I blinked in confusion, and in a instant a huge crash erupted from beside me throwing wood chips in every direction. I dropped down instinctively to the cot, my face buried in the lumps. A moment passed, and I heard more far away shots of fire. The sounds that followed were splashes of water, and more cannon balls hitting the ship. I bit back a scream of fright as I looked up. A canon ball, slightly smoking, was wedged in the wood work of the floor right beside my left foot. A gaping hole was in the wall behind me, giving me a view of the ocean.

I sat upright in haste, and stuck my head out of the hole the cannon ball made. I stared at the blue salt water about 8 feet below the hole, and when I looked up at the horizon a colorful clown like ship was rocking toward us.. A man was on it's front, head, thingy, and he was laughing obnoxiously, putting his whole face into it. He seemed to have make up on as well, and a big red clown nose.

I was now even more confused, these guys...

I looked up at the offending ships sails for a moment and then glanced behind me as I heard movement. Captain Vorik was finally getting back on his feet when he started cursing up a storm, he bolted towards the upper deck.

The clown ship not only had a Jolly Roger, but it looked like it had a lot of crewmen on the ship itself, raising glinting swords and yelling, "Arrgg!".

"Pirates!" I screamed, mostly in surprise and maybe a little bit of skepticism.

I immediately whipped around to face Mr. Grease Lightning himself, my limp hair falling in my face. I suddenly found it impossible to not yell, this was straight out stupid. I screamed at Jeb with rage lacing my words like poison.

"WHAT THE HELL?! THERE ARE PIRATES HERE TOO?! I SWEAR TO GOD, AND OUTLOUD! **FUCK**! I HATE YOU PEOPLE! STUPID MARINES!"

And just as I finished my eloquent yell of confusion, anger, and hate. I heard more yells from the upper deck, in panic and in fury the crew was yelling, the pirates were going hit the ship again..

There was more rowdy stomps on the boards above me, dust floating through the cracks inbetween.

The ship I was on the Dementia, suddenly rocked too far to one side, and my jail cells door swung open directly across from me, and my cot slid forward. I barely held on as my cot slammed itself on the edges of the now open cage door. My body was perfectly placed in-between, still sitting on the cot. I now stared up at a frightened Jeb, looking at me like I had a sickness or something. Dementia rocked the opposite way now, and in quick succession rocked back the other way. The boat creaked loudly, almost like it was in pain, and my cage's door swung back towards me, nearly hitting me square in the face, but then swung again and hit Jeb.

Jeb let out a surprised yelp as he was knocked backwards, and stumbling like crazy he finally fell and hit his head on a nearby barrels edge.

Jeb the web was now unconscious, and I was currently hyperventilating, looking back and forth between Jeb and this gaping hole in the wall of the ship. My gaze was locked between the pirates ship, and to this cannon ball in the floor. My cot was squeaking across the floor again, weren't they supposed to bolt these things down in ships? My cot knocked heavily against the side of the ship and I lurched forward in a snap. I steadied my body, holding myself upright with eyes widening as large as dinner plates. Below me the floor was groaning.

"ALRIGHT MEN!" Yelled this Clown pirate.

"LOAD ANOTHER BUGGY BALL!"

"AYE AYE, CAPTAIN BUGGY!"

"AND PREPARE TO BOARD THE MARINE SHIP! GAHAHAHA! WE'RE GETTING THAT MAP OF THE GRAND LINE!"

Instead of being able to process what the Grand Line even was, another moan was heard in the floor boards below me. This time it was louder and it actually caught my attention. When I looked down, I noticed the wood beneath me wasn't secure, cracks and the panels were bent, the cannon ball was slipping from the hole it had dug itself.. I heard the cannon's shoot off again, a series of bangs in the air.

Before they even hit the ship. My cot and I fell through the floor.

* * *

21 pages in all guys. I'm VERY proud of myself! Anyway, hopefully you're seeing a bit of Claire's character, and I hope you liked the chapter! The next one will be out when it gets out, hopefully soon. PLEASE REVIEW! :)

Cheers!

Holly


	6. Feeling

STEPS © ChidoriShiori  
One Piece © Eiichiro Oda

** STEPS**

**Disclaimer**: I do not own One Piece. I only own this story, my character, and this here plot

**Hope you enjoy this chapter!**

**CHAPTER FIVE**

**.Feeling.**

* * *

My vision swirled, and on the instant of impact of the cot and the floor below I cringed, and everything sharpened, objects focused again. "OW!" The exclamation escaped my lips in reaction to the harsh jostle of my _everything_, and immediately my hands grasped the cot with my elbows at a bend. A few seconds passed, the pain settled, and with a push my elbows locked out as straight as rulers.

I took a long shaky breath and exhaled.

Two falls in how long? A week?

I wanted to cry so bad it was pathetic. I must be black and blue based on the soreness I feel. Gingerly with one hand I rubbed my lower back slowly. It sure did feel like I was badly bruised, everything else felt tingly as if under my very skin someone was just barely tickling me-just barely gracing every pore and making me shudder involuntarily.

I stared abstractly at my legs. Everything in my lower body was still numb so far, I gave a tough poke to my thigh, I didn't feel it of course but-

It wasn't exactly sensation of any sort, everything was still so unresponsive, but after falling into this cooler part of the deck and the fall I noticed something-

"It's..cold?"

With a quick smack of my hands I clapped them, and rubbed them together vigorously, much like I saw my doctor do a few times before starting therapy. The friction gave my poor dry palms a wave of warmth, and when I knew they were hot enough, I rolled up the fabric of my jeans and gave a firm press to both my left and right ankles.

And then in a sudden movement of my arms only, I moved my hands away.

…

"I felt-" I nibbled on my lower lip and slowly straightened out my back so cautiously.

I felt a slight warmth, only barely so that I'm not even sure if I wasn't just imagining it..

But I felt the absence of heat for sure. On** both legs**. The cool sensation on my ankles was the same sensation as the feeling of a breeze on my cheeks.

I could feel the temperature on my skin on my legs. I haven't been able to do that since-

"The fall-" I snapped my fingers rapidly in realization. "I-I landed-"

"The water was so cold too. After I landed I felt it."

I sighed uneasily, my head feeling dizzy and airy, excitement coursing through me like fire.

"In the ocean- I landed on my back, my body was at an angle. Acute angle. When I landed I must have _injured_ myself again.."

"I've regained some feeling."

The shock of the realization slammed into me like a semi truck.

"_**The second fall through the Jail deck didn't reverse anything, thank god. That 2% chance...Actually meant something."**_ I scowled at nothing in particular, grinding my teeth and feeling jumpy.

"Don't get too excited Claire- Just don't...Be careful and all that."

I breathed in deeply, my grimy face feeling so warm in my hands. I rubbed my cheeks, feeling slightly damp. I couldn't cry. Even from happiness.

I straightened suddenly, with a sense of purpose in my eyes, and in an instant I was blank no more happy tears no more anything. I was merely focused as I glanced around shiftily.

Another positive I can check is that my cot and I landed on some clothe bags and random fancy chests...And paper.

That looked an awful lot like money.

These Marines didn't know how to present themselves in a good light! They one I met were all sneaky jerks, and now they were corrupted? An entire room filled with treasure on a government ship?

I shook my head vigorously at the thought. My main objective right now is to find a way home, or at least come out of this alive. I glanced up at the broken ceiling, bits and pieces of debris falling silently down at their leisure. Where was home anymore? My eyes traveled down and to my left, towards a solitary white door. The panicked and angry screams of men above me were giving me a little insight of what was probably happening on deck. For now everything seemed to be in the heat of insanity, but only I was in the calm bubble of clear and coherent thought. The pirates were aboard the ship and they were fighting. They were probably killing people too.

Would they kill me?

Or did it just not matter anymore? This ship would definitely sink soon, hopefully with me NOT on board, but what could I do? I glanced down towards my knee's, very knobby and clothed in denim. Could I even swim without the use of my legs? I would assume my lower body would just drag me down as if cement bricks were attached to each ankle...

"Arghsh!" I groaned and buried my face into my hands for the second time. Now I'm just calling myself fat, and that is not what I need now.

_Bright outlooks Claire, be positive._

"_What can I do to get out of this?"_

I peered up towards the ceiling again, now feeling nervous and uneasy, I began to fidget.

The light leaked in from the gaping hole above me, illuminating little wisps of dirt and dust, as it caused everything in the room I was in to glitter. Nearly everything dazzled and twinkled in my hazel eyes because just about everything was made of gold, silver, diamond, and every other title that the pokemon games have ever used.

I was in the treasure room, it took me like 5 minutes to actually notice?

"I- **Really** need to see my surroundings when I look around...Obliviousness will get me killed at this rate."

I reached down slowly, very tentative about stretching my back, and I lightly grazed the gold coins and soft tufts of money wads with the tips of my fingers. The silver and other precious metals were cold to the touch, and not to mention beautiful. It was stacked everywhere, beneath my cot, and in every corner of this square room. It had probably been stacked in a meticulously neat manner before I crashed into it all so now it was all scattered, just like in the movies. I blinked slowly at the sight, drinking it in, and "absentmindedly" grabbed a few handfuls of the strange foreign money and stuffed it into...Well everywhere. My eyes were wide, still quite surprised at all the objects around me.

The stereotypical crowns, rubies, sapphires, goblets, BRICKS OF GOLD were all present.

And again, my thoughts came to a full circuit- I couldn't help but wonder why a military like service, like these marines, would have all this stuff?

Was it confiscated or was it stolen?

My face soured stubbornly at the idea, they probably swiped all this cash by misuse of authority. I will never trust a marine in this world ever again for as long as I live! For all I know they'll just try to arrest me again as a axe murdering hit and run, wheelchair using, **bad** girl.

I scoffed to myself angrily, "Ridiculous." They don't tell me anything, the put me in a jail cell, and they took me away from a group of cooks that could have helped me home.

"Patty, Zeff, Chi-" I counted off on my fingers, "And Sanji."

I'll remember their names just in case, they did save me after all from death via drowning.

I sighed while trying to not feel bad about stealing money in general and being tempted enough to consider how this stuff could fit in my bra **and** if I would need to unhook it and put it on a looser setting to turn my b's to c's.

Who knows, it could be profitable for my well being later to have some money on me. Just in case the marines win this fight, I could possibly buy my freedom from a crooked officer. I nodded to myself, certainly self assured now, feeling more optimistic and more careful. I was crippled enough as it was, there was no more need to assume that everyone else in the world would be as nice as Penny was. That was naive.

The sounds of injury were erupting from the upper decks in a more rapid tempo, I could tell the yells of pain and grunts of effort were drawing closer to the door just in front of me and it seemed the crazy laughter was growing. The pirates were winning, and I couldn't help but wonder what kind of people would these pirates be?

Another shout of agony sliced through the air, followed by a set of deep laughs.

I was going to find out.

Tensing up, I straightened my back with my shoulders drawn and I gulped with my eyes as wide as could be. My complete attention bore into the door as if I wanted it to start burning.

There was the sound of footsteps, a parade of them. Coming closer.

Maybe the best I can hope for is some stray sympathy from a bighearted pirate with thoughts of his own daughter at **his** home? Maybe I'll be left alive because of thoughts like that. They couldn't all be cutthroats!

"BAM!"

The traditional wooden door was bust open, splinters shot everywhere and the top door hinge was completely jerked off of the door frame. I squeaked in absolute fright, caught off guard with the mask I had gingerly built failing miserably. I crumpled in on myself in a knee jerk reaction. I was cowering and peaking between my arms when the Red nosed pirate with sky blue hair stopped mid laugh to stare at me in surprise.

"WHAT THE HELL IS THIS?! WHO'RE ARE YOU?!" He screeched in a relativity high pitch voice, obviously a live human was not supposed to be in the treasure room.

"Who am I? W-who are you?" I asked cautiously, my voice sounding like a child's. I tried to keep my eyes wide and doe like instead of shutting them and chanting to myself, "THIS ISN'T REAL THIS ISN'T REAL!"-

The Pirate, holding a set of glinting sharp knifes in one hand, one between each finger, and a gun in the other paused completely in his movements. His expression turned confused as his clown smile was flipped upside down.

"You better answer my question first girl!"

Oh man, there were men behind him too, not as tall, but looking quite bewildered as well.

They weren't saying anything, just staring, and I tried to look them each in the eyes, showing my sincerity.

"Uhm okay okay, I-I'm Claire Steele..N-Nice to meet you."

"OHH!~ NICE TO MEET YOU TOO-" Said one man in an airy tone who seemed to have a lions suit on.

Buggy reared up, blubbering incoherently, with his shoulders back and chest out to glare at the man who had spoken.

"O-OI! YOU SHUT UP! I'LL HANDLE THIS?!" The clown pirate turned his gaze back to me, eyes narrowed and fierce. He was raising his hand that was full of knifes, and they flashed, glinting angrily in the surreal light that was in the room as he lifted them near his face.

I was shaking in my money filled pants.

Buggy's white glove covered hand shot out and held his 4 knifes to my throat, I bit back a scream and my own hands shot up in the stale air to create a mock surrender. The metal was cold against my neck, with the feeling of a sharp edges biting at my skin, but at least he wasn't cutting me, his eyes had widened some, the whites showing as he noticed my obvious fright.

"Alright Steele! Are you a Marine?!" He barked.

"N-No, I'm not. I hate those guys!" I lowered my hands to hold up my shaking upper body, and his knifes thankfully didn't press any further. He was watching what I was doing like a hawk, giving me a chance to speak and possibly save myself. I nodded up to the hole and the ceiling, but his eyes didn't flicker. His men however, finally noticing the gaping hole above their heads and their cannon ball in the floor, literally buried in treasure...They gasped.

"You fell through the ceiling 'cuz of our cannon ball?! HAHAHA YOU HAVE SOME LUCK GIRL!" The man in the lion's costume cackled, as did the other men.

I gulped and steadied myself, "Y-you guys actually broke me out of jail. I'd like to thank you for that."

Buggy's face twisted and froze in shock, "YOU WERE IN JAIL?!"

I noted to myself, as I nodded slowly, these men didn't seem to be the sharpest knifes in the drawer...Buggy's own knifes however in his hand glinted, looking very sharp.

Okay, very bad analogy.

The men in stripped shirts and cloth belts started talking amongst themselves, and Buggy turned back towards his men with his knife filled hand rubbing the back of his head as he blushed.

"WOW BOSS, YOU'RE A GOOD SHOT!"

"YOU PRACTICALLY SAVED HER!"

"THE BUGGY BALL DIDN'T EXPLODE?!"

Buggy straightened up and put the back of his hands on his hips, "I-I WAS AIMING FOR THAT! HAHA! THAT'S WHY I'M CAPTAIN!"

The men behind said Captain started crying in glee, "YOU'RE AWESOME CAPTAIN BUGGY!"

"THIS MUST BE A SIGN!"

The heavy stone in my stomach vanished, I suppose I really was lucky for this chance. I just needed to keep it up a little more!

"Y-you see, the marines are accusing me of something terrible that I didn't do, they've kept me here for 6 days. Not telling me a thing! A-and they also injured me! Now I'm afraid I can't- I can't even walk." I controlled my quiet voice where just at the end of my little sob story of misery, my tone turned frail and upset.

The dumb pirates all gasped, Buggy himself put his hand over his heart as if it couldn't take the sorrow, and I buried my face in my hands and shook my shoulders up and down in a mechanical manner. This was actually working?!

I blushed to myself, feeling embarrassed at my corny act.

I peered up at them through my fingers, making sure the pirates got a good look at my watery eyes.

_**'And now for the**_**"pièce de résistance..'**

"S-since they imprisoned me, they've been making threats like I'll never be able to see the light of day again!"

I shook my head in false woe, the pirates were eating it up, "I got so scared, m-my only thought that gave me hope. That made me, (-insert fake asthma like gasp) r-really smile. Was the thought of going to the grand line. For adventure!"

The pirates all took a step back, shocked.

"WE WANT TO GO TO THE GRAND LINE TOO!" Said one man, sounding like it was the revelation of the century.

"IT'S OUR DREAM!"

"CAPTAIN!"

"CAPTAIIIN!"

Captain Buggy became befuddled by all of the sudden shouting, and clenched his teeth. He hastily gave the gun he was clutching to one of his crew men who stared at it like it was a piece of candy.

Buggy pointed at me dramatically with the his now empty hand.

"A-ALRIGHT! IT'S SETTLED! YOU'RE COMING WITH US! TO THE GRANDLINE!" Roared Buggy.

I blinked my eyes in surprise.

"WE'RE GANNA HAVE A PARTY TO CELEBRATE!" Cheered the lion man.

Buggy jerked his hand towards his men behind him, "MOHJI! CARRY HER BACK TO THE SHIP!"

Captain Buggy then snapped his head towards the treasure with a predator like grin, and at the moment I think I was in a state of shock. It had worked?

"AND THEN LETS GET THIS TREASURE!"

"AYE AYE!"

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

"_And everything went better than expected!"_

"Uhm, thank you for carrying me.." I mumbled to the animal man, keeping my face clear away from the fuzz.

Mohji was a nice fellow, he had wide black eyes and a grand smile on his face as he strolled through the injured and the dying Marines on this ship. Mind you, he didn't seem to care that he was stepping on face's, ribs, and even private regions as he stepped through, but I wasn't necessarily complaining.

He told me it was no problem, Captain Buggy helped others all the time and accepted new crew members at the drop of a hat.

I'd be welcomed as if I'd been with them forever. Anyone who shares the dream of boldly traveling of the Grand Line is praised, and they could help me find work of some sort.

I blinked curiously, "Uhm, how long has Captain Buggy been a Pirate?"

Mohji gasped excitedly, "Oh! Captain Buggy? He's been a Pirate since he was really young! He was on Gold Roger's crew, you know!"

"Gold Roger?"

_**Weird name.**_

"The one and only- Pirate King!" Confirmed Mohji, hoisting me up with a slight jostle.

Electric shocks of pain zipped through my body immediately, with a tense moment I tried to relax and not claw savagely into my own palms with my nails. I endured and bit my lip to which Mohji didn't seem to notice.

_**That's a baaad reaction, Spinal injury victims shouldn't be moved after another injury let alone carried piggy back style and shaken like a salt dispenser! This idiot-**_

I cringed in pain, "_he's just doing what he was ordered, if anything I should have said something!"_

"M-Mohji, do you have a doctor on your ship?"

"Yup! We sure do. He might be able to fix you up when he sobers up."

"Sobers up...?"

Oh god, he better be sober if he decids to give me treatment!

It was overwhelming, all of it was, when Mohji finally walked out of the lower decks and into sunlight, I was trying not to gasp at the scenery around me.

The ocean, the crumpled crewmen of Marine soldiers, the sky.

The lion.

"That's a lion." I said dumbly. Mohji didn't seem to care I was captain obvious, vice captain of the Buggy crew- as in I'm going to go Buggy in about two seconds- I whimpered in fright.

"That's Richie, but don't worry, he likes girls."

...

_Well, at least the air outside was pleasantly warm!_

"He likes girls. That's nice, and his name is Richie. That's a handsome name. Did you name him? I bet you did."

I was rambling at this point, words spewing out of my mouth at a increasingly fast rate as Mohji held me securely and crossed leisurely onto Buggy's ship. The lion licked his lips as he stared at me somewhat like a cat would, not lion or tiger like at all with far more personality. I was puzzled over this as the crew and I began watching the other pirate members trash the marine ship Dementia.

These pirates weren't kidding when they said they were going to throw a party back on the ship.

They weren't kidding when they said they'd take the map to the Grand line and sink the marine's into the ocean either.

Once all traces of treasure were gone from the Dementia, which took about 5 minutes mind you, they sent the boat to the bottom of the sea with their exploding cannon balls. The water around Dementia created a odd effect, somewhat like a fountain as it flooded every deck slowly and the ship began to tilt and disappear.

Luckily though, some marines escaped into small crafts. They survived the attack, and it made me feel less guilty.

By association, I felt I had sort of lived up to what the marines thought I was, even if it wasn't true...

"Richie is a really nice lion!~ Oh yes he is!~" I coo'ed into the greenish fur of Richie who just was laid behind me acting as the perfect backrest and eating up all the attention. The king of the jungle was simply licking his lips lazily in the sun, and letting me pet him and love on him to no tomorrow. When Mohji introduced me and carried me to Richie I wasn't all that surprised, I had gone numb with the entire sinking of the dementia sight and Richie acted like a kitten anyway, he didn't pounce or roar so I didn't say anything about it. I didn't freak out.

In fact I couldn't **not** believe what I was seeing.

Lion man Mohji, who had two sets of ear's, had a huge pet lion named Richie.

That apparently made sense here.

And later on, I didn't laugh hysterically into Richie's fur, I swear..

At this point I wanted to refrain from getting to involved with the crew, but I didn't bother answering questions in overly mysterious ways, I told the blunt truth about myself when it came to personal questions.

_How old was I?_

16.

_Where did you live?_

In a town called Shayside.

_What do you want to drink? _

Well the ship was stocked with Rum, Grog, more Rum, and water.

**Water**.

And apparently once their doctor got out of his grumpy stupor from the party they had the night before. He would give me a check up to see if I had anything broken.

I was laying away from the partying of the Buggy crew, many left me alone, a lot of them didn't even notice me. All of them were men, and in their 20's and thirties, and in summary quite intimidating. Those who did take note of me were friendly though, the essence of the phrase, 'you can't judge a book by it's cover.' which drives home my thought that everyone on this crew were old boy scouts or something. One or two had informed me with big cups of grog in hand that THIS ship was called Big Top and that the crew had been searching for a good map to the Grand line for quite a while. So today, to their joy, they had found their map. Plus treasure. Which all things considered for pirates, was a welcomed thing.

I sighed tiredly, relishing the warmth of the sun from the apparently foreign sky above me. I was some place far away from home yet the sky was colored a familiar bright blue. The weather now was different from my last experience outside, and I was happy for that, but I still stunk of sweat, my hair was still matted. I felt home sickness and random shocks through my lower body if I was bent at a certain angle...I was a mess, but it was warm, and I was free, and the lapping of the waves no longer sounded angry. It was calm.

How long have I been in this area?

How far did the marine's take me away from that restaurant? I rested my head on Richie, who purred in a ridiculously cute manner.

Now that I think about it, I don't even know that restaurants name..

This boat was nice and all, but I want to go home, I would need to get off and find a way to escape. I couldn't let myself be run off into far away places names, "The Grand Line".

I need to get back to that restaurant.

At all costs.

* * *

Reviews are nice huh? I think they're quite dandy myself.


	7. Straw Hat

STEPS © ChidoriShiori  
One Piece © Eiichiro Oda

** STEPS**

**Disclaimer**: I do not own One Piece. I only own this story, my character, and this here plot

** WHOOHOO!~ Chapter 6 guys. 8D 16 pages long in open office.**

**CHAPTER SIX**

**.Straw Hat.**

* * *

The snapping of gloves.  
The moment where finger tips let go of the stretched out ends of the gloves and allowed the rubber to clap loudly against a wrist. Why Doctors insist on making their diagnostic tests dramatic is beyond my comprehension, it made them seem awesome and flashy, but it always make's me nervous.

"You mind telling me _how _you got this old scar conveniently over your lumbar disks?" The old  
doctor grumbled angrily. He thumbed my back a few more times, just probing as he awaited my answer, but my throat had gone dry.

Doctor Hark hissed like a snake, was tall and broad-shouldered, and had the body type that  
reminded me of an upside down pear.

The crew was right

This guy is grumpy.

And what was worse was that I couldn't tell if he was sober or not by his weird ass accent.

It was a mix between German and Italian..Maybe even Russian too. All in all it made  
deciphering what he was saying a bit difficult.

"You see, the story is kind of mixed up-" I tried to explain nervously, my voice cracking as I tried to make it rise into a higher register, but Hark only grunted in reply. His hands left my back in a "Walla~" type way with his arms up and gloved fingers in the air to clomp loudly in front of me with his big black boots. He stood in front of me like a sergeant, and he clapped his arms to his sides with his hands on his hips and his white as snow mustache twitching angrily. I however, was laying down on my belly with my arms cradling my head. Innocent.

"Don't bother," he held up a hand in exasperation.

"So far I didn't feel any fractures, no broken and or displaced discs anywhere on your spine.  
Cervical, Thoracic, and Lumbar disks are good, though is seems with that "Fall" of yours..."

He sighed and grabbed at a brown traditional pipe sat on a stack of papers with chubby  
fingers.

"Although the pain you're feeling, the 'shocks' as you described, are to be expected. Your nerves pulled a magic trick and the fibers are now sending messages to and from your brain now like a  
normal persons would-"

_Ding ding ding!_

"So I'm healed?! I can walk again?! I can-"

Before I could speak further the doctor  
gave me a hard look.

"You weren't walking for more than a year right?! If you practiced walking by pure muscle memory in rehabilitation you could-"

"I did that! I stretched with nurses nearly every day- I couldn't stand up on my own  
but-"

"Stop. Interrupting me kid." He pointed the mouth piece of his pipe at me. I wilted at the scolding.

"I won't talk unless spoken to. Swear." I promised demurely.

With a sigh and a pregnant pause he continued, "As you probably know, after 6 months the likelihood of spontaneous recovery diminishes. A lot."

I nodded solemnly as he reached for a box of matches, "I'm no chiropractor but I could try to speed up the process of recovery. Sort of. What's basically has happened to your spine is, by the mere chance, your nerve fibers have been shocked back into working condition. Because of your big fall into the ocean the new injury made this all possible. Once I do this you'd feel a lot of shocks, your nerves probably either being hyper or hypo sensitive-with maybe even some random hot flashes and tingling sensations too, but the over all effect would have the feeling back from your hips down to your toes...To an extent."

…

"Can I speak now?"

"Yes."

"Could you really do that? I mean would it harm me at all?"

"Depends on _you _really. I bet with some help you could walk around a bit. Simple tasks like walking up and down stairs, squatting, and other stuff will of course be tough for you. Your legs will not be used to that work, but it's—doable."

I took a deep breath, Doctor Harks office smelling strongly of smoke and whiskey. It was  
worth it.

"Can you try it then? Please." I asked quietly as Doctor Hark stood up and adjusted his gloves again.

"Sure." Was all he said as he walked over to my side and adjusted my shirt higher to where most of my back was exposed. He gently poked for a few moments as I breathed steadily.

"You ready?" He asked, like he's bored and this was as entertaining as watching pain dry.

"Y-yes I think so-"

And before I even  
finished my sentence-

"HAAAIIIIYAH!"

Hark punched me in my back. So hard my breath slammed out of my lungs. I gasped for air  
and cringed with a sharp cry of pain as Hark began to laugh evilly.

"**_-WHATTHEHECKISWRONGWITHYOU?!"  
_**  
My words jumbled together in anger as I yelled into the cots fabric  
below me, muffling myself. Now the shocks were making me want to  
wiggle and jump out of my skin.

Make it stop!

"That'll do it.~"

Now he sounded chipper and accomplished.

_Bastard-Bastard-Bastard!_

He lightly patted my right shoulder with a rubber-covered hand as a shudder clashed and rammed through my every bone and dug into ever fiber of my being.

"There! You see! I'm such a genius, your toes are curling! Just barely, but it's there!"

I snapped my head towards the hack doctor and spat through my clenched my teeth, "That  
HURT!"

"GOHAHAHA! That was the point!~" His eyes shone in pure amusement as he clapped his hand on my shoulder again and again roughly, making it ache.

"Come now, let's try to stand you up girlie, before you make me bust a gut!" He exclaimed, his very eyes tearing up from laughter.

I struggled against him now as he tried to hoisting me up, this guy wasn't a doctor, he was a  
heathen!

"No-No, I don't think that's best!" I tried to explain, but Hark was persistent in 'helping' me.

"Who's the doctor here? ME! If you don't try standing up now then when?"

"HOW ABOUT WHEN I'M FEELING BETTER?! YOU OLD-"

He grabbed my shoulders and immediately anger flared up in me like a flame. I'm tired, dirty, and lost. I hate pirates, I hate marines! My fists clenched as I grunted with the effort it took to swipe my arm towards his face. To no avail I missed miserably and I got heaved up up and lifted off the  
cot. My yellow converse sneaker covered feet dangled over the beat up wooden floor.

"Alright now! Calm down! We're going to try to make you stand up!"

"I SAID NO!" It wasn't even a shout by ordinary standards, it was just my rendition  
of a cry of anger, always so muted and unheard. My face turned the same shade as Buggy's nose.

And with that thought the door to the infirmary opened, with Buggy in the door way chortling, "WE FOUND AN ISLAND!~" He exclaimed all closed eyed with his grin being so big on his face. The grog in his cup sloshed as he tilted his whole body in the door way while he giggled.

"YOU GOT HER HEALED YET?!"

The doctor and I, myself staring in astonishment of the entire situation, and Hark's eyes boring blankly towards his captain let go of my shoulders when he inadvertently shrugged.

With a yelp I fell with barely an instant passing when my feet made contact with the wood and for a split second Buggy exclaimed, "SHE'S STANDING, LETS THROW A PARTY! TO SHLEBERBRATE!~"

I wobbled uneasily, trying to not scream incoherently at the weird sensation attacking my  
legs.

"See?! I told you!" Shouted Doctor Hark, and the moment he took a step back to take a  
glance at my standing form I fell forward with my hands barely catching myself and preventing my head from smashing onto the floor. I took a deep breath and tried to move my legs but I only received weird jerks that made the floor squeak from the rubber on my shoes.

"GOHAHAHA! SHE'LL NEED SOME PRACTICE!~" yelled Buggy as both he and doctor Hark began  
laughing at my predicament on the floor, obviously agreeing with each other in that sick twisted way.

It seemed everyone now was on this kind of happy high with myself being the only exclusion. They had finally gotten their map of the Grand line so every little thing needed to be celebrated. Buggy was yelling again, to the entire crew now, "LOAD THE BUGGY BALLS AND TAKE AIM AT THE TOWN! ONCE YOU HEAR THE SCREAMS-DROP THE ANCHOR! WE'RE HEADING OUT TO THE NEAREST TAVERN WITH SOME GROG AND FOOD!"

The crew responded immediately as Doctor Hark nodded sagely. He crouched down on his  
hind legs next to me, "Gohaha! You can practice strollin' about on the island, kid!"

I can stroll and get away from you guys- I needed practice...O_h of course_, as if my grunts of effort to even bend my knee's or stretch my calf's didn't prove that enough...I began to struggle even more furiously, to pull my legs forward or to even sit. For a while I just listened to the cannon fire as I huffed and puffed to move and focus or at least do something useful. With all my might I tried to ignore the orders being shouted and the familiar rocking of the ship- and then  
after what seemed like forever after the cannon's shot off into the distance. Terrified screams began to erupt from the town all saying the same thing. I scoffed to myself, revulsion slamming into my stomach..

"**Pirates."  
**

**-.-.-.-.-.-**

I wobbled unsteadily as I watched the doctor carefully gather random objects from around the  
room to stuff them into his briefcase.

I halfheartedly thought to myself in contempt, that his case was obviously not entirely suited for medical purposes. A lot of the objects he had jammed inside would most likely be used in lethal way's and not for good and by how much stuff actually fit inside had me wondering if it was  
enchanted or something.

The lower ranked men had gone out into town and now the "main show" including Buggy,  
Hark, Mohji, and Cabaji were about to set off into town as well, including myself but I would probably be the equal to the awkward girl passing out popcorn compared to the big clown.

Everyone was pretty damn chipper about everything, but I couldn't really see why. It was  
just weird and surreal to me, I was the outsider. The _angel_. People actually enjoyed others getting hurt and gathered in groups and crews like this...

Hark swiveled around to stare blankly at me, and I shrank into myself with shoulders scrunched immediately. It was understand able that these people would want me to go with them, be apart of them after just meeting, but maybe they couldn't process my true nature very well. I didn't wreck havoc, and as far as I knew I wasn't even mildly rebellious any more. Sooner or later I would be shunned or killed off; I would have to leave very soon. I stood very stiffly and awkwardly against the infirmary bed.

"D-do I like scary?"

My hand absent absent-mindedly traveled to my tangled strands of hair.

It probably looked like a bird's nest right about now, but the doctor only laughed.

"You do, but at least you can scare away some villagers for us! HAHAHA!"

I sighed.

"Could I borrow a bandana or something please?" It was a plea- one this guy didn't even deserve with my voice being at its softest and the 'please' sounding so earnest, but for some odd reason I felt it was necessary. Even for potentially bad people I want to be nice, but I also want and craved to just wander around on my own or something, but I had to _depend on these guys. _This doctor in particular being rude and snobbish in a way that reminded me of a disgusting egotistical self established king.

My fingers were now desperately trying to tame the strands at the top of my head and I  
was about half way there in making it stay in one place.

"Yeah sure." And he pulled a yellow Bandana out of his sleeve as if were nothing. The cloth seeped out in one long stroke of hand and he dangled it in between his fingers. I looked at him in shock.

"A-are you like a magician? And it's even yellow! I-Thank you." A small smile began to form on my face as I stepped toward him stiffly and accepted the cloth.

I tied my hair back with the rough yellow fabric that actually smelled quite sterile, and wound it around my forehead and looped it around my wad of hair. I smoothed the rest of the cloth down and I think I hid most of the tangles from sight. My eyebrows were hidden, rendering me emotionless looking unless I cracked a smile; and it also covered my entire forehead. The darkness encased my gentle hazel orbs and did a reasonable job in making me (in my  
opinion) decent enough to not scare tiny children.

"To answer your question, I am indeed a magician. It takes a lot of practice." Hark snapped his hand out and in between his pointer finger and the middle one was an ace of spades. He closed his fist with the card inside and opened it again to show it was gone. He laughed at my expression.

"Doesn't take a lot to impress you huh?! GAHAHA!"

My eyes widened and I answered immediately, "That's true."

"Alright then! We'll head out, and we'll be on the roof of the biggest tavern. HAHAHA!"

Doctor Hark closed his case with a soft click and shut the infirmary door behind him without  
another glance towards me.

I gave him a nod of my head, "Okidoki." and I clomped my way behind him with my legs  
moving like stilts and probably making me look quite awkward...

-.-.-.-.

I peered up the old wooden staircase like it was a mugger with a knife, or in my normal circumstances now, a pirate with a saber.

A strangled sound erupted from my throat.

"Ohmigod why?" I wheezed, as I leaned to one side tiredly, my shoulder rested against the cold wood as I gripped the peeling banister tightly. I gazed up at each glistening plank of wood individually, they gleamed wickedly, probably laughing at my pain.

"Everything's out to get me..." I whined, my voice cracking whilst I fanned myself with one hand, trying to get rid of the slightly red hue in my face.

Of course I lagged behind everyone else when we set out, and between the wreckage to trip over and random pieces of wood that was scattered everywhere. About a quarter of a way there the crew gave up on me and decided to just let me tackle it at my own pace and be, "A REAL ADVENTURER."

**'And if that was the case; I would have smacked someone if they dared come back into MY "Adventurer zone." I swear these people give me such a hard time...  
**

"So many stairs..."

I heaved pathetically, lifting up my leg as if I was struggling to lift up a 20 pound weight from the ground and set it on the first step of what seemed like a thousand.

"_Excuse me."  
_

"OHMYFU-!"

Immediately, a small feminine hand slipped over my mouth and turned my head around. What I noticed first was a light complexion and wide brown eyes blinking back at me. This girl who had surprised me had vibrant and short orange hair and a sharp gaze.

She slipped her other hand to her own mouth and motioned to be quiet as boisterous laughter  
echoed from up stairs.

A million questions zoomed through my head. I began to fidget feeling butterflies begin to fly around in my stomach and explode.

'Who is she?'

'What does she want?'

She then removed her hand from my face slowly.

I just stared and backed away a bit. "What do you think you're doing!?" She hissed.  
She threw me a 'Are you stupid' expression, her eye brows lifting up and tenting as she whispered, "You do know PIRATES are up there right!?"

I paused stupidly, "U-Uhm, yes, I do know..."

She gave me an even stare, "Listen it's not safe. Those guys will tear you to shreds if you go up there! Don't try to be brave and confront them!" She huffed and grabbed my arms, slightly shaking me.

**'Wait, what is this chick going on abou-'  
**

Ooooh.

At that moment I wanted to flail my arms about and smack my hands to my gaping mouth.

_She doesn't know I'm a pirate!  
_

_Ooooh nononono!  
_

"Listen! I want you to try to head toward the docks or something as fast as you can. I'm going up into one of the treasure rooms these pirates have and taking something, and I'll be out in about two minutes got it? I'll try to meet you and help, but I don't know if someone might be following me or not..."

This mystery girl bit her lip for a moment, and then a wicked glint came into her eyes. I was frozen, why couldn't I say anything? And stealing? SHE WAS GONNA STEAL FROM BUGGY?

Her hand clapped itself under my chin and made me literally shut my mouth, I stared at her in  
shock.

"Go now!" She patted me on back quickly and began to creep up the stairs as quiet as a cat...And so easily that it made a bit jealous-

**One day stairs! I will conquer you!  
**

They creaked back in reply, probably saying something like, _"Fat chance." _and I sighed. "T-this is going to be a long day..." I turned around gingerly and began to do my version of a slight jog as I traveled out into the dirt streets again.

Why?

Because I'll go back to the docks, like that girl said, and get on the ship! Then pretend as if I never saw her! No way was I going to get caught as an accomplice!

But jogging was so hard.

My breathing became labored, I was gulping down deep breaths before I had even traveled 30 yards and my legs were feeling really funny at this point. It was the sensation of putting weight on an asleep leg, everything prickled.

I slowed down and put my hands on my knee's, huffing and puffing and trying not to just  
drop face first in the ground in a heap.

"I can_-" _I gasped_ "-_walk. I don't have to rush. Hahahaa..." I trailed off uneasily, pushing my bandana against my forehead and gulping.

The sun was not really helping me at this point, it was shining brightly. Too brilliantly for my current health to relax me. It made my skin so warm that I was beginning to sweat and the dust that was still settling in the air was making it difficult to breathe.

I began my awkward clomping again and adjusted my blouse, right when something or someone grabbed my hand and nearly yanked my shoulder out of its socket. I stumbled forward and was just BARELY able to catch myself. My foot literally skid across the ground in time for me to regain my balance, and then in a millisecond I was zooming. I was running faster than I had ever run in about a year, I was so tired that I was putting on foot in front of the other desperately without even thinking.

My head snapped up to see the Orange haired girl, barely grinning with a what looked like a rolled up piece of paper in her other hand. My hazel eyes widened feeling such a horrible sense of  
dread from what she just dragged me into.

"O-OH NO!" I blurted.

The girl in question glanced back at my expression and then down at the map she was  
clutching, "The map of the grand line!" She said simply and in the next moment she picked up the pace to a point where I wanted to scream and claw her hand off of mine.

"W-WAIT- I DON'T THINK YOU U-UNDERSTAND!" My words went out in a rush and I spent  
the next few moment wheezing loudly and clomping behind her with my hand limp in her death grip of my wrist.

And from behind us I began to hear the faintest sound of commotion.

We rounded a corner and sped off away from the docks.

And then the yelling was getting so close- "IS- IS SOMEONE CHASING US?" I yelled in panic, and the brown-eyed girl nodded, glancing behind her every so often and telling me to hurry up, run faster, get a move on.

**_'I can't!'_**  
I wanted to scream.

"THERE'S NOT A SOMEONE IT'S A GROUP!" She snapped, growling and tugging harshly on  
my arm.

"C-CAN YOU STOP?!" I pleaded, but she didn't want to listen.

"STOP, THIEF!"

"GIVE US BACK THAT MAP!"

And then when I was about to drop-

**BOOM  
**

"**YAAAHHHHHH!"  
**

With a jolt the girl and I turned around to see at one moment Buggy's pirates chasing us  
with pissed off expressions..And in the next second to see a boy falling from the sky and land in their path. The girl's death clutch left my wrist as she screamed and the boy fell to the ground in an explosive heap.

Dust kicked up wildly and I choked, I used my arm to shield my face from pebble's and dirt, as I  
fell to my knee's. I was coughing hard and the blast whizzed past and all around  
me. My bandana nearly flew off my head, but I held it down in place, and the orange haired girl fell right on her butt towards my left hand side.

A voice shouted from the dust cloud, "Who's shooting cannon balls at me?!"

"What the-" I started, squinting into the dust and just barely seeing a form of a man right in front of me, a skinny boy actually, he stood up with one hand on his head with the other in a clenched fist by his side. He wore shorts and a red sleeveless shirt, and a straw hat on top of what seemed like wild strands of ebony hair.

I was in a daze, heaving and staring at him as his eyes seemed to focus and his eyebrows shot down in an irritated way, "PHEW!" He sighed in relief as he looked around.

"I'm alive."

It sounded so simple.

He got shot down from the sky with a cannon ball and with ease he just shook it off with no  
trouble at all. He gave a short huff in irritation, but smiled nonetheless and gave a quick pat to his shorts to get rid of the dust. That was all he did and he looked fine. He was alive, like I was. Extremely lucky. Like I was.

I began to laugh. My hand covering my mouth and the pirates sending me a bewildered look.

"That's great man! Glad you're okay!" I smiled up at him, and he only blinked at me with a smile forming on his face as the thief beside me flinched right back into action.

"BOSS! YOU CAME TO RESCUE ME!"

I jolted in surprise by her exclamation, it somehow pierced the air as her voice went a few  
octave's up to where it sounded overly girly, and then in a daze I saw her jump up and take off down the street again.

"Eh?" I mumbled, gazing at the way she was bolting at full speed.

And leaving me here with fly boy and three pirates...

"WAIT- WHAT?!" I screeched, my arms drawing up to my chest to smack my hands over my  
mouth.

"I'LL JUST LET YOU TAKE CARE OF THOSE GUYS!" The girl exclaimed from half way down  
the street and the suddenly the pirates surrounded the straw hat kid.

"FORGET THE GIRL!" Roared the bald one with bolts in his head, a nasty scowl was on his  
face.

I jerked and tried to go through my difficult process of standing again as I squeaked and scrambled. My efforts were in vain, I was too exhausted, too out of breath, my legs ached in the calf's and were seizing up.

I could barely move.

"We've got the thief's boss right here!" Exclaimed the crew member with the checkered bandana on his head.

"He's a bigger prize than she is! Now listen here man-" The other one began to rant, trying to get straw hats attention.

And then there I was, feeling so helpless again. I glanced back and forth between the pirates, every one of them had a long sharp sword in hand and were glaring down at the dark-eyed boy with the scar under his left eye.

He was oblivious, yet so focused when he stared right at me, just staring down with a smile. "What's your name?"

He asked with a grin. The underlings were getting more angry by the second at being ignored.

"F-FORGET MY NAME! PLEASE R-RUN!"

And then in a movement almost to quick to comprehend the large stitched up pirate smacked  
the boy near his temple with an angry crack. The Frankenstein like pirate shouted in mirth, "ISNT THAT RIGHT...BOSS?!"

"THAT MAP BELONGS TO THE FEARSOME PIRATE, BUGGY THE CLOW-"

The boy's straw hat flew into the air as I screamed in fright. He was going to get beat up to a pulp! He was going to die, they were going to kill him!

I wanted to shut my eyes, to just block it all out, but before the brute could even finish, the boys fist slammed into his face and sent him sprawling backward.

"-HEY!" The two other pirates stammered and flinched at the boys glare, backing away unconsciously as the boy stood up stalk straight with his shoulders back, and caught his hat easily.

I whispered to myself in scandalized amazement, _"He caught it without even looking..."  
_

"Don't touch...The Hat."

My mouth dropped open with an audible pop, and then with me getting the front row seat and occasionally "Oohing' and "Awing" as the guy in the straw hat beat up the other two guys; in a about two seconds flat they all ended up in a heap around the straw hat boy.

I avoided squealing in amazement and settled for complimenting him, still catching my breath  
on the ground.

"That was awesome!" I chirped in excitement.

"_Wow!"_

The Straw Hat boy and I glanced up at the roof a brick building to our left. The thief girl was sitting on the decorative planks of wood that held the store's sign, looking quite happy.

"You're tough! You beat those saber swingers with your own hands."

"Saber...Swingers.."

I muttered to myself, frowning a little at the comparison.

"Uh- who're you guys?" Asked the Straw hat kid, glancing at Nami and then me.

I opened my mouth to speak as the kid stared, but the girl spoke up first. "The names  
Nami! I specialize in robbing Pirates blind! Wanna team up with me?" She grinned.

"R-Robbing pirates. That's a bit risky." I said shakily, but Nami only swung her legs happily back and forth and stretched her smile even wider.

"It is, but I'm the best at it! I steal treasure, jewels, and together-" She glanced back at the straw hat kid, "We could make a fortune!"

"Ah." I blinked and to my surprise the straw hat boy only shook his head, "I don't want to team up with you!"

He then turned to me expressionless and held out his hand, I gave a small smile and took it in a strong grip, easily hefting my self up by my arms strength alone. And then he began walking away.

"Hey! Wait a minute!" Yelled Nami as she jogged lightly to walk beside him.

I blinked and for a moment stared down at the ground in thought. '_I guess I should follow them...'_ With a small sigh I began with small steps, every little move made me ache, but I just listened to what they said without much input on my part.

"Hey, why'd you get so mad when that guy touched your hat?" Asked Nami excitedly, I rose my eye brows and just shook my head.

The mystery boy's steely response was, "This hat is my treasure." With no further explanation. It seemed to make Nami kind of restless.

"Treasure huh? Do you keep jewels inside? Or maybe a treasure map!? Ooh- Oh maybe-"

I glanced back at Straw hat, his hand had rose up to pat it gently, "Aww, leave me alone.  
I've got things to do." He sounded so bothered, like a little kid, and with that I tilted my head to one side and giggled.

.-.-.-.-.-.-.

So at the moment, things had calmed down, I had cooled off, Nami had shown us a place where I could sit down, and the Straw hat kid...

"So you lost your crew at sea?" I asked curiously, my elbows on the table as I stared unabashed at the straw hat kid as he nodded, "Yup." He assertd with a chuckle, and while thinking to myself, 'Loosing your crew is nothing to laugh about..'

Nami asked calmly, "How many crew members did you have?"

"One. It's just myself and Zoro." It was my turned to chuckle, "Oh, I see. So are you like a pirate?"

He then really beamed, he smiled so wide his eyes closed and he nodded ever more vigorously,  
"YUP!"

"WHAT!?" Screeched Nami suddenly, and I flinched in my seat. She was sitting on the table itself and suddenly she was waving her hands in a quick way and was repeating to herself, "Nope! Nope! Nope!"

"What's wrong Nami?" Asked Straw hat and I, both a bit clueless and not giving much reaction anymore when she decided to snap again.

"FORGET ABOUT WHAT I SAID EARLIER! I WON'T TEAM UP WITH PIRATES..." She then paused with a frown on her face, "SO YOU CAN FORGET ABOUT THE 50 50 WITH ME."

Straw Hat only laughed, "Okay, but I have a question." He threw Nami a shrug of his  
shoulders. "Can you Navigate any?" It seemed the question was directed at both Nami and I, but compared to Nami's suddenly positive response that she was the best darn Navigator of all time. I stuck out my tongue.

"I could never be a navigator. I get lost pretty easy, as in like, I don't even know which  
direction the sun sets." At that comment, Nami flipped her shit behind me, but Straw Hat seemed befuddled as he gazed at me, "Doesn't it set in the south?" He asked and I tilted my head, "I honestly don't know myself, but your probably right." I smiled, while Nami growled  
behind us, "I CAN'T BELIEVE YOU TWO. THE SUN SETS IN THE WEST."

Straw Hat and I blinked, "Really?"

"YES!"

We turned back to snicker at one another, "Haha! You learn something new everyday I guess!"

"THIS IS COMMON KNOWLEDGE, YOU IDIOTS!"

"Suuuurree.~"

...There was an awkward pause as Nami slammed her hand into her forehead, she then lifted her  
eyes and explained how this town was deserted and a bunch of stuff I had already assumed about my current 'Captain'.

Buggy was a trigger happy cannon ball shooting pirate who was merciless.

Nuff said.

"Listen Nami! I think you should know something if you hate pirates so much. Trust me I don't like them either, but because we're being honest I'll just say it: I'm a part of Buggy's crew.." I cringed.

"WHAT?!"

I started waving my hands stuttering and Straw Hat began to laugh, "You're a pirate Claire?!"

"Y-yeah, b-but not entirely by choice. _Sort of..._ If I was in a crew I would rather be on, I dunno, his." I pointed to Straw Hat whose face became practically engulfed in a smile at my comment.

"Che- Pirates are the reason I'm even heading to the Grand line." Grouched Nami, and Straw Hat exploded with enthusiasm. "WHAT?! I'M GOING TO THE GRANDLINE TOO!"

I on the other grimaced, "Sorry if I'm out of the loop, but why does everyone want to go to the Grand  
line?"

"Pirates go there." Said Nami and Straw Hat in unison. I stared blankly.

Who care's if pirates go there though..?

Nami signed at my vacant expression and continued, "The biggest and baddest pirates go to the grand line to seek Gold Rogers Treasure, One Piece, and I'll steal any pirates treasure when they go! I'll get a 100 million berries to buy a certain village."

"100 Million? That's a lot for even a great pirate." Commented- _He hadn't even introduce himself yet_, and I looked down at my lap in thought. _Did he say his name while I wasn't paying attention..  
_

"Yup, and let me tell you now. IF THERE'S ANYTHING I HATE IN THIS WORLD IT'S PIRATES! BUT  
I LOVE MONEY AND TANGERINES!"

_Another_ awkward pause.

"Uhm, well I hate Marines a lot. I love the color yellow and pirates so far have only  
saved me from death soo...Yeah." I muttered while Straw hat chuckled.

"And I just love meat and adventure! So one day I'll become King of the pirates and give  
back this hat to my friend who gave it to me in the first place! This hats the reason I want to gather a crew and become a pirate! Heehee!" I smiled at his enthusiasm, while Nami only scoffed. "Pirate's...This world is crazy..."

Nami then stood up and looked between Straw hat and I. Her eyes decided to narrow at me.

"By the way, what do you mean when you say you didn't have a choice in joining Buggy's crew?"  
Observed Nami more evenly that I would have assumed. She had simmered down a bit, but was now a bit cautious. Her eyes were narrowed and she seemed to have a pokerface on. I began to stutter.

"I-it was either figure out a way for Buggy to let me in his crew or drown in a sinking ship." I explained, my fingers messing with my bandana on my head.

"YOU WERE IN A SINKING SHIP!?" exclaimed Straw Hat as he started clapping and laughing some more. I wondered if all the things I had said were simply funny from the way I said it or if it was just his sense of humor, but I nodded anyway and agreed with him nonetheless, "Yeah,  
I know right? It was a marine ship."

More giggling from the dark-haired boy, and more astonishment from Nami.

"So what? Were you originally a MARINE?!"

With all my might I tried to not snap at THAT accusation, it seemed Nami was pretty high strung compared to the other pirate in the room and myself and I winced. My hands were still up in a I surrender pose and so far my forehead was starting to ache from making this expression I was  
making of: 'Hey, it's not all THAT bad.'

"No, no I wasn't a Marine either. I mean it when I say I hate those guys." I confirmed.

"Heehee! Why were you on a marine ship then?" Asked Luffy.

I looked at Luffy oddly, and decided he was the most cool-headed one here despite everything else...So I turned and explained it to him instead of TNT Nami.

I nodded at him again with a slight chuckle, "That's a funny story really!~ The reason I was on a marine ship in the first place was 'cuz I got arrested."

A grin broke out on my face as Luffy burst out into laughter again. Nami's eyes bulged, "JUST WHO ARE YOU?!"

"The same person I've.." I paused, "_Always_ been...Claire Steele."

"Heehee! And I'm Monkey D. Luffy! Nice to meet you Nami, and you too Claire!" He  
giggled again as he continued, "So, you wanna to join my crew?"

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

**AN:**

Funny story about this chapter. I seriously don't know which way the sun sets or rises  
So I was like, "Okay, I don't know myself, but Nami SHOULD know- So I should Google this shit and find out." And I can usually just put in the question into any search engine without going to any links to find out that simple of question...

BUT IT WAS MADNESS I was coming up with all the links of 'LOL I DUNNO."

"It RISES IN THE WEST."

"NO, NO IN THE EAST."

I was like, "COME GUYS. PICK ONE SO I CAN KNOW FOR FUTURE REFERENCE!"

It made me laugh, but it also made me realize that people from out world, A.k.a. Claire and I. Would get lost SOOO easy! Like I know I have Zoro's ability of not knowing where the hell he is but going on hell bent missions anyway lol!

Now don't forget to review! 8D


	8. The Big Bang

STEPS © ChidoriShiori  
One Piece © Eiichiro Oda

** STEPS**

**Disclaimer**: I do not own One Piece. I only own this story, my character, and this here plot

I have 20 reviews! -Claps excitedly with huge smile-

Thank you to everyone who has reviewed so far! I'm so happy you like my story! 8D Please enjoy!

**CHAPTER SEVEN**

**.The Big Bang.**

* * *

"J-join your crew?" I stuttered while behind me Nami was fuming. I withdrew my hands from the table and placed them in my lap.

_With Buggy's crew I'll be able to travel, but there will also be a lot of fighting and killing._

_I won't be important in Buggy's crew, so my specific needs probably won't be met. _

_They won't take detours for me in order to get me back to that restaurant. _

_...They're all set in going to the Grand line, but so is Luffy's "Crew."_

_But he seems nicer though..More humble._

I hummed to myself in thought.

_**'It's not a hard choice really.'**_

"I'll join your crew." I said solemnly and immediately Luffy began to cheer. It made my cheeks heat up to see him so happy about _me_ joining. I couldn't even do much. He began waving his arms in a windmill above his head and turned to Nami with a grin, but Nami didn't seem so happy.

"Eep!" Suddenly I was jerked out of my chair, at one point I was looking at Luffy, but now I was staring into the cold eyes of a pissed off Nami. My chair skid across the floor with a loud clatter and silence cut through the air like a scythe. The thief held me by the collar of my shirt, her clenched fist was around the cloth tight and with strength I didn't even expect from her she lifted me off of the floor. Leaving me, for the second time today, dangling.

"You're not in a life or death situation any more! You can choose to stay away from pirate scum! If** I** was in your situation it would be so easy to leave pirates forever! Don't join this guys crew!"

I paused, blinking up at her in shock. What did she mean by that...

_**'Who is she to tell me that?!'**_

_'This is just a misunderstanding-'_

I gulped, and tucked my chin down in defiance, "H-Hey! I have my own reasons for joining with pirates! I need to travel who knows how long or far, and I **need** find a way to get back to a certain place.."

She would have none of it and shook me again, rattling me roughly as I ground my teeth. Luffy was out of his chair now and was trying to stop the impeding smack or punch to my face.

"What the heck are you saying?! You can hop a boat easily! You can take it wherever you want **without** pirates!"

"No- I CAN'T!" I spat, growling now, and my voice raising in volume.

Nami's fist tightened while I frowned, my eyes were prickling angrily by this point. Nami just didn't understand as she yelled, "YES YOU CA-"

"**I don't belong here!**"

She looked puzzled, her eyebrows furrowing at my statement. Of course she wouldn't get it. She probably thought I belonged in this world.

_**'Stupid, Stupid, Stupid!'**_

"If there's anything you should know about me...Get** that** _**fact**_ through your head! I can't walk for long distances, let alone run, I can't protect myself! I know I can barely protect _others_! That's why I need support. Of any kind! To find ways to get back _home_!"

Nami flinched, and her fist relaxed, if only a little. I blearily continued, fighting back a full blown growl. "You know? HOME? Where family's are?! I will get back there even if it kills me!" I spat, and in an instant I felt myself fall. I closed my eyes as she let me land gracelessly back into my seat, and I resisted the urge to rub my butt in a sorrowful manner.

Nami's fists were still clenched, the orange-haired girls knuckle's were stark white. I guess I hit a nerve.

I furiously tried to fix my shirt and straighten it out while Nami's eye's seemed to widen.

Like she was getting an idea.

"_Okay_... It seems we're _all_ in a fix here...Claire need's support, which I'm sure I can offer..and since you're Claire's Captain now Luffy...You can help her too." I snapped my head up in shock. Nami's face wasn't angry anymore, just a little tense.

"I'll join your crew, Luffy, but on one condition. You go with me to Buggy. That's all I want." Nami smiled, as she held one finger up. Luffy's expression didn't change.

"Okay. Lets go to this Buggy guy!"

My eye's practically flew out of my head, and if I had been drinking coffee I would have spewed it everywhere. "WAIT WHAT?!" My hands went to my head, holding it in horror, while Nami only grinned and took one hand off of my head and yanked me up out of my seat. Again.

"You can't go to Buggy! He'll kill you!"

I wobbled and almost fell again against the hard wood floor, but Nami steadied me with two hands as Luffy made his way out the door determinedly. With a grin still plastered to the thief's face she leaned in close to make a point. My eyebrows shot to my hair line.

"_You're going to help and play along with my plan okay? You help me, I help you. Got it?"_

Oh for the love of-

I pushed her away, with a small frown on my face. "_Whatever_, bipolar lady."

_Snarkiness at 100% now..._

Nami barely frowned, only looking curious as we began to step out into the sunlight again, "What's Bipolar mean?" She sounded like she honestly didn't know.

"Uh- I-it means awesome and stuff...And _wow_, wherethehelldidyougetthatrope?" My words went out in a sudden WHOOSH as she suddenly lifted up a hand full of brown rope. I pointed at her hand hesitantly, and I resisted the urge to look around for places she could have hidden it as she closed the white wash door to the house calmly.

"Yeah, what's with the rope?" Asked Luffy, his hands in his pockets and his good old hat on his head. It's red stripe now looked brilliant against the dulled colors of the town, and I couldn't help but wonder if my bandana did the same. Nami stepped up to my _new_ captain, and a small smile stretched her mouth slightly, but her expression didn't necessarily reach her eyes.

"It's just rope, you got a problem?" Countered the thief, and Luffy and I only shook our heads. And for the first time I noticed my arms as we walked, when in my wheel chair I was always using them, but now... I smiled and wrapped my arms around myself as I strolled beside Luffy. Nami was on his other side as we began back tracking to the tavern at a comfortable pace, and when it was in sight it's entire bulking form took up the entire end of the street.

In all it was a huge building it had 3 stories and an even bigger stair case...

_Hello Freddy Kruger, I see you took the shape of a tavern today_...I heaved a sigh in exhaustion.

Luffy turned to look at Nami, a puzzled expression on his face. To be honest I was a bit confused as well.. Why did Nami want Luffy to go with her to Buggy? She was the thief that stole his map. He would be absolutely furious .

"So what are we gonna do here?" Questioned Luffy, and the only response he received was a wicked grin from Nami and ultimately getting _roped_ into a very bad situation...

…

The pun does nothing for me...

"Nami! What do you think you're _doing_!?" My voice cracked as it went into a higher pitch, my hands swung by my sides in anger and at the moment I was just a bit fed up.

Luffy was on the ground, struggling like a fish as Nami tied off her dead knot.

"What do you think, Claire? This is my plan." She was adjusting a few other things with the ropes while Luffy kicked and bucked, making all sorts of sounds as he fought.

I put my hands on my hips as I frowned, "I-I can't let you do this!" I exclaimed in a final motherly like tone, and tried to make my way over to Luffy, but Nami only stood up and with on hand on my shoulder to stop me from getting any closer. She was snickering now.

"N-Nami! Seriously!-" I huffed and stood back, my chest puffing out as I glared and pointed. "He's my captain, so like, let him go!"

Nami found this amusing and giggled out right with a hand over her mouth. "You're more persuasive than I thought Claire-Chan~"

"_Claire-Chan!"_

"_Why do you call me Claire-Chan Leo? It's not like we're in Japan..." _

_Leo only chortled, "It's important in Japanese culture! You should make note of it when you watch One Piece or some other anime!"_

This time I stopped dead.

"Clai..re- Chan..? What'd you call me?"

"Claire-Chan! And hey, I don't care if you call me just Nami, but for appearances sake in front of Buggy call me 'Nami-San.' you have to help me get on his good side!"

And she began to take long stride's toward the tavern, expecting me to follow, with Luffy being dragged along.

And I did follow.

With a whole lot of complaining and cursing to the heavens from me by the time we got to the roof of the tavern, I was adamant about my whining, and I gave Nami an earful.

"Nami! stairs are evil!"

She looked back at me expressionlessly, "Yeah, I know. You've told me."

I sucked in a deep breath, clutching the railing for dear life. I was so happy to be able to walk and all, but this was hard!

"W-well they are!"

"Uhuh."

"They kill people Nami!" I insisted.

Luffy this time spoke up in a peeved tone, almost forgetting he was in ropes. "No they don't Claire!"

_**{AN: HAH. HAH...Zoro and Kuina would disagree~}**_

.-.-.-.-.

And then before I knew it, Nami and I stood in front of Buggy. He was sat lazily in a chair that resembled a thrown. It was gold and brown, the fabric he sat on being blood red with jewels plastered into the head rest and legs.

I counted off the men in my head that I could recognize. Richie the giant lion wasn't far away, but his expression was hard and angry. I faltered a bit in my resilience and frowned, he seemed so different now. Something must have happened, everyone was rigid and glaring at us without scrutiny. And to say it simply Buggy the Clown was a bit surprised to see me there beside the thief that stole his map.

_I am definitely **not** making a good impression here._

"Ooh, Claire you're finally here? What are you doing with this wrenched **thief** that stole my map?!"

Nami and I flinched, but I gave Buggy my best smile, as Luffy said from the ground. "Ugh, Nami you tricked me!"

"Captain Buggy..Uhm, Nami-san was ordered to steal your map by this guy. O-of course against a great crew like ours she felt it was hopeless and I tried to explain that to her..." I pointed at Luffy who was a more than than a little irritated and growling incoherently.

"I was making my way to the tavern when Nami-san ran by me with the map and I- tried my best to follow, and then this jerk fell out of the sky and beat up our guys. Then Nami-san had a disagreement and so-"

The orange-haired girl herself grinned, and came to pat my shoulder enthusiastically.

"I came to apologize, and more importantly give back your map. My captain is a real idiot and by Claire-Chan's example I saw what a great crew you had. Very loyal indeed! So, I want _you_ to be my captain now!"

There was a shocked pause and a few loud clinks and clangs as swords and cups were dropped from tense hands. In that pause I raised my hand into the air with a big smile, beaming directly at the flabbergasted Buggy, "A-and I can vouch for her! She can steal anything for us and she's a great Navigator! When we get to the Grand line she'll be a great crew member! So- PLEASE CAPTAIN BUGGY!"

I tried my best to bow without falling. Nami's hand shot out and grabbed the back of my shirt, holding me up as my arms flailed by my sides.

"H-HUH?!" Exclaimed Buggy, his eyes bulging out of his head and blue hair swinging.

"I-I-I-I SEE! SO YOU GOT TIRED OF YOUR IDIOT CAPTAIN EH? A-AND YOU WANT TO JOIN **MY** CREW?"

Nami nodded, while I tried to maintain my flickering smile. After about two minutes of tense silence Buggy began to giggle, and then chuckle, and it wasn't long before he tilted his head back and started to laugh.

It made me sigh in relief, everyone began to follow suit after their captain and laugh as Buggy smacked the arm rest of his chair repeatedly.

"NICE FIND CLAIRE! HAHA!" Buggy pointed at Nami as she stood with her arms by her sides. "I'LL LET YOU JOIN MY CREW! YOU'RE AN AMUSING GIRL!" The crew cheered deafeningly, and clinked glasses enthusiastically. Swords and daggers were slid from sheaths and pointed skyward at Buggy's exclamation.

With a deep breath I straightened and shot Nami a grin, and she smiled back with one brown eye winking. After a few moments I scampered over to her and huddled behind her as Buggy began shouting again. Ordering this and that and getting the crew rowdy and wild.

It made me nervous, but Nami didn't seem to mind and kept her happy facade up perfectly as I practically hid behind her back.

I glanced at my true captain, his straw hat hiding his eyes as he began wiggling again. Two of Buggy's goons grabbed him by the upper arms and heaved him up and my own smile completely dropped. For a moment they stood there holding him, but while they restrained him 4 other full grown men were moving a huge cage toward the other end of the tavern's roof. The men dragged Luffy over by the elbows and locked him inside with a hard shove.

I bit my lip nervously and let Nami be called over by Buggy. I was left alone in the crowd of pirates. They juggled daggers, and began to drink entire barrels of grog upside down. I cringed.

"WE'VE RECOVERED THE MAP OF THE GRAND LINE BOYS! AND GIRLS-" Buggy motioned towards Nami and I with a leer, "AND NOW WE HAVE ANOTHER CREW MEMBER. OUR NAVIGATION IS COMPLETE!"

And with a final yell, Buggy's gloved hands shot in the air, I moved over closer and closer to Luffy's cage. No one seemed to notice; every crew member was too caught into Buggy's speech, and I certainly didn't mind.

"NOW LETS DRINK TO OUR HEARTS CONTENT! AND ON THE BATTLE FIELD, LET US FIGHT WELL!"

"YEAAHHH!"

And another party began.

.-.-.-.-.-.-.

"Hey Luffy, are you okay? I'm sorry I framed you like that, but I promise I'll help you out of this." I was sitting next to Luffy's cage. I would be squatting but it was like the doctor said: It was too difficult, I tended to lose my balance and fall to one side if I tried and plus my calf's would ache.

I didn't mind sitting really, I just had to be careful of the dust or spilled grog.

The ropes Nami tied Luffy with were still wrapped tight around him and the party was still raging on. At random intervals I heard curses, cheers, and even compliments, but I hadn't caught sight of Nami for a while.

"It's okay Claire, you're still on my crew! Nami's mean though she can forget it if she wants to join!" Luffy huffed irritably while looking off into the distance, and I smiled gently.

Until he began chewing on the bars of the cage...

I didn't say anything for a while, I just watched in morbid fascination until he grouched, "I'm Hungry!"

"Ah." Was all I said, tilting my head as I watched.

"I don't think Metal's very filling eh, _Boss_?" I glanced over towards Nami, and what do you know she was squatted in front of Luffy's cage..Smirking all the while as Luffy and I stared.

"Oi! Let me out Nami!" My Captain complained while still gnawing on the metal cage. "He's hungry too Nami-_Chaaan_." I added with a scowl, because _really_, the reason he was even in this situation was because of her.

For a moment Nami paused, looking in-between Luffy and I. Maybe she hadn't expect that we'd get to the point so quickly, and then with a sigh she stood up gingerly and walked away.

"Ooh, I think she's going to get you something." I bent my head slightly to watch her walk through the crowd.

Luffy tilted his head as well to mimic me. "Hmm, you think?"

"Mmhm."

A second later like I had predicted, Nami was back glaring blankly at Luffy and I as if saying, 'See? I'm not all that bad.'

A slab of charred meat was in her hand, cooked to perfection with even some sauce on it.

"You _do_ have a soft spot." I cooed as Luffy practically devoured the meat from her hand like a bear or piranha. I flinched and leaned toward him.

"Jeez Luffy, remember to chew."

…

For a split second he just held the full chunk of meat in his mouth as if he was contemplating about swallowing it or listening to me. His eyes were wide and staring at me for reaction.

Then his cheeks began to move slowly

"_Smack..."_

"_Smack..."_

"_Are you serious_?" My face dropped of all expression as I put my face in my hands. "Luffy. _Really_?"

He nodded quickly with a small cheesy smile on his face, all scrunched together with all the food in between his cheeks. He giggled like a little kid, obviously amused.

"Uhuhn! So Nabi, choor not sho bad. I'll ret joo join mah crew." Flecks of food escaped Luffy's mouth before he finally swallowed and grinned.

"I told you before! I'll never join! I don't want to!" Yelled Nami with her voice hissing from anger.

I rose my hand suddenly, "Uh- Nu-uh! You said you would! You said you'd join!" I insisted while crossing my arms tightly. "Nami, I don't like liars."

"Me neither!" Added Luffy while Nami sent a heated glare at us. "Listen, Luffy my plan will go great now! I'll let you out once I steal the loot! I promise."

"Just let me out now!" Luffy pouted.

"Yeah! Do it!' I was beginning to pout as well.

"Do it!"

I poked Nami suddenly in the side, my cheeks flushing, "You know you want to."

She choked and stuttered, "O-oi! Do not!"

"**BWAHAHAHAHAHA!"**

"SO WHAT'S IT FEEL LIKE BOSS THEIF!? TO LOSE YOUR FOLLOWER!"

I mouthed, "Whoa" in a disgusted manner as I turned to face Luffy again. Buggy was practically standing over us and was shouting some kind of nonsense that he felt needed to be rubbed into Luffy's face.

He's so elegant like that...

"Follower? Nami's not my follower!" Insisted Luffy, and I blinked while noticing he was _still_ pouting.

"Not anymore eh? I guess you must be sore about that huh?! Being betrayed and all." Buggy sneered with a cup of beer in hand. I scooted away as it sloshed and dripped, some of the froth rained upon the ground way to close to my jeans for comfort. Nami had a similar expression on her face, but didn't dare try to scoot away like I had.

"I have my map back, but stealing from the Great Captain Buggy is a veery serious crime! Your fate has been chosen for you!"

Luffy blinked, "Oh, so you'll let me go?"

Buggy grinned, "Yess, I'll let you- " He stood up stalk straight in anger, "NO! I WON'T LET YOU GO! YOU BABOON!"

"Ah." Remarked Luffy in that calm of way of his. I gulped as I stared up at Buggy as he raised his arms high above his head with a huge smirk on his face. "PREPARE THE SPECIAL BUGGY CANNON BALL BOYS!"

"YAHOOO!"

"YEAH!"

I slipped my hands over my mouth, "Oh no." I muttered, and after the cannon was rolled up to the side of the tavern 3 men readied the fuse and lit it. The cannon was shot over the edge of the tavern, actually rolling back from the power of the blast. The ball roared and screamed as it left the cannon's barrel and with one shot clean into one side of a house it imploded upon itself. In a plumb of smoke buildings that made up one side of an entire street were knocked off their foundations. Wood screamed as planks broke and were bent till they splintered, pipes were busted, and any paper that lay still inside of these buildings scattered into the air like confetti.

"THIS POWER IS SO GREAT! IT CAN LEVEL A SMALLER VILLAGE! WITH MY DEVIL FRUIT POWERS AND THIS CANNON! THE GRANDLINE WILL BE EASY TO CONQUER!"

Nami and I looked on with shock as debris settled and the cannon was moved.

..Right in line with Luffy's cage.

I stood up on impulse, swaying a little as Buggy began to laugh hysterically and tug Nami and I over to the cannon.

"You two can lite this together! Make your first Kill Claire Steele, and get rid of your old boss Nami! SWEAR YOUR LOYALTY TO ME! BE FOREVER SINCERE ON THIS...AND I'LL KNOW YOU'LL HAVE THE REAL DESIRE TO HELP ME CONQUER AND RULE THE WORLD!"

_First kill.._

_Conquer._

_Rule the world...?!_

"This is insane." I muttered, too quiet for Buggy to hear beyond the sudden cheering, but near enough to Nami to make her flinch in fright.

I was frozen as Buggy's hand grabbed mine and thrust inside my palm a box of matches. If possible, they made my skin itch and burn.

I would never kill. I never want that. How could he think I'll kill for him?!

I looked at the matches with an undisguised disgust. As usual it went unnoticed.

Nami began trying to persuade Buggy nervously, she had stepped closer with her hands up near her face. "N-No Captain Buggy, I can't- H-HEY! L-lets DRINK! FORGET THAT GUY, CAPTAIN!"

I looked up at Buggy's expression finally, feeling the wind grace my skin and a cold shiver travel down my spine. It was so difficult- being caught in this mess. Meeting my new captain that was supposed to help me and support me like Nami had said, because of that slim chance when he got shot down from the sky. I'm walking again, after only a 2% chance giving me hope. I never thought I would be so happy, so excited. If I was home I would run to my mom and dad. Like taking my first steps all over again. I would cry, I would smile, I would show Leo and skip with her or something, I couldn't care less about what I would ultimately do. I would do it all, but-

The light shadowed this pirates eyes. Making them glint in that familiar way, like a knifes sharp edge. Buggy's "smile" was nothing but a cruel grin.

"**Kill him." **Buggy said, like it was so simple; like he could kill someone in his sleep.

_**'Guy's like him are making it difficult to feel anything..'**_

I finally looked at Luffy, almost desperately, the corners of my eyes felt wet, they were stinging. I wiped at them furiously with the sides of my palms. Luffy was only smiling at Nami and I.

_**'And then guys like him help people no matter what.'**_

The other pirates around us began to chant: "SHOOT HIM IN ONE GO!"

"KILL HIM CLAIRE!"

"GO NAMI GO!"

"QUIT STALLIN!"

"SHOOT!"

"SHOOT!"

"_Nami, you're hands are shaking." _Luffy voice was the one that called for Nami and I's attention the most, and I gripped the matches in a death grip.

"_I guess you don't have what it takes to be a pirate, huh?"_

"_What's that supposed to mean? You mean we don't have what it takes to kill someone else?! Of course I don't have that! I don't want that ability!" Spat Nami, her forehead was glinting with sweat. Her hands **were** shaking. She glanced up at me nervously, her eyes searching my face to see what I had to say. I only bit my lip and tried not to fall to the ground if my legs gave out._

_Luffy only smirked, "No. That's not what I'm talking about. You don't have what it takes to risk your own life..."_

_**'W-What?!'**_

Again, like that feeling when I was on that marine ship. Being told that I was a killer, a sinking feeling was in my stomach. Shattering.

I got out a single match from the box and closed it again, my eyes dark from underneath my yellow bandana.

"Hey! Nami, Claire, I know what it is- You don't know how to shoot a cannon do you?! Haha! Here let me show you!"

A cold hand clasped around my own, trying to make me release the matches.

"N-No!' I whispered.

That anger was back again. That rashness I tried to lose. I snapped.

With a wave a anger I turned around with a clenched fist and punched the underling of Buggy's straight in the face. He yelped, holding his nose as blood spewed down the front of his shirt. He fell to the ground as I straightened my back and frowned.

Nami gasped one hand drifted to her open mouth, "C-Claire!"

"I'm sorry Buggy, but this guy over here-" I jabbed a thumb towards Luffy, "He's my Captain! He's no thief and he can't be my first kill! He will never be! That's why I was on that marine ship anyway! I got arrested for murder!"

I fisted the match box in my hand, feeling the box begin to fold in on itself.

"_**I've already taken one life too many, so I won't kill him! YOU STUPID RED NOSED CLOWN!" **_

Luffy, again, was probably the only one that was calm, his expression was the perfect poke face, and even I was scowling terribly amongst the shocked and now pissed off crew of the Buggy pirates. I threw the match box clean over the side of the tavern, into the blue sky and down deep into the rubble filled street. I marched my way over to Luffy and plopped next to him non to gently on the ground with a deep frown on my face.

Luffy looked over to me simply, eyes as wide and unchanging as usual against the roar of the pirates in front of us.

His eyes closed as he smiled.

He began to laugh.

.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.

REVIEW

-.-.-.


	9. Resilience

STEPS © ChidoriShiori  
One Piece © Eiichiro Oda

** STEPS**

**Disclaimer**: I do not own One Piece. I only own this story, my character, and this here plot

**CHAPTER EIGHT**

**.Resilience.**

* * *

To say that Buggy was a little more than just irritated was an understatement.

He was furious.

I had punched a guy in the face for the first time in my life.

In that instant, like air under intense pressure I escaped the restriction I usually placed upon myself. I shot out and I punched a _pirate_ in the face.

Buggy's pirate.

A grown man.

It was scary and my knuckles on my right hand hurt like hell, and if that wasn't bad enough, I insulted Buggy's nose- AND called him stupid. I had defied him. Betrayed him, and suddenly I felt that familiar edge coming back to me. That impulse was making me talk shit to a very dangerous man that outnumbered Luffy, Nami, and I by more than fifty.

It was probably the dumbest thing I could ever do at this point, and I was pushing it more and more. I was might as well be skipping and frolicking way past the line that clearly read, 'DANGER, DO NOT CROSS", as soon as my fist connected with that guys face. I was too far gone.

Buggy's face was as red and bulging as his nose. He was fuming, and to add fuel to the fire Luffy was laughing at him outright and at _me_ for my gall.

"_I guess you must be sore about it huh?! Being betrayed and all." _I threw Buggy's words right back at him that he had used on Luffy. I was sure I would going to die now, but at least I was standing up for what I _thought_ was right. I was defending my captain, and I think with what I was doing it gave Nami a simpler choice.

She fought back as well.

"KILL THEM BOTH PAINFULLY!" Wailed the Blue haired pirate, and on his command his men began to pounce.

I flinched hard against Luffy's cage as 4 men began to charge Nami, still standing by the cannon, with sabers and daggers. They yelled angrily, throwing their heads back with war cries that would have rattled and hurt weaker throats.

My hands immediately turned to clench the bars of Luffy's cage, the metal was cold and rough against the palms of my hands but I held on even tighter. Nami reached towards her thigh and pulled three metal poles from their holders and in a second she snapped the black pieces together to swing at the men with all her might.

"_CAPTAIN BUGGY I GOT THE FUSE LIT!" _

Luffy and I gasping like fish out of water, whipped our heads around and screeched,**"WHAT?!"**

It was true, a man with dirty and stringy purple hair was crouching against the Cannon's back, awfully close to the fuse's base. With a jolt Nami was barely able to whip her head back to glance at the man behind her before she had to fend off more attackers again. She couldn't handle that by herself, and here I was just sitting.

I blubbered random curses, and furiously I attempted to stand up again. My knee's almost buckled but with a growl I slipped the match I had in my left hand, inside of my back pocket and I slammed my hand on top of Luffy's cage to propel myself forward. I ran. I couldn't even process what I would try to do to that guy. I just headed towards him with my heart pounding in my ears and my arms moving back and forth more quickly than my legs.

I hollered at him, almost trying to shoo him away like a bug with my arms swatting at his greasy head. "GET AWAY!" And after a few second of just slapping him, in a gratifying way I received the sting on my own hands at my hits landed. Numerous loud smacks were heard as I my finger tips and palms connected with cheeks, temples, and even his nose once or twice.

"PUT OUT THE FUSE!" Shouted Luffy, who's calls of panic were only just registering in my ears.

I was barely able to slap this guy right in the eye and miraculously made him stumble back with a shout of pain. My head snapped towards the shrinking fuse and upon quick inspection it seemed _half_ of the actual material was on the ground. With a curse I realized the jerk has lit it close to the base so it would go off faster. I took the sparking fuse in between both hands and with a squeeze I smothered the angry flecks of fire with a quiet 'hisss'. I winced and bit my bottom lip. Nami was behind me swinging her staff wildly. I heard the whooshing sound as she swung it and the yells of men getting knocked away, but by her breathing I could tell she was getting tired. At this point we weren't going to last against these guys. I pulled back my hands to see about 4 inches of fuse left. The end of the fuse was black, no longer red or sparking, and it slightly smoked.

I gingerly opened my hands wide, and a dark red burn mark was in the middle of both palms stinging angrily.

_**'This is nothing. I've had worse.'**_

"C-CLAIRE!"

"LOOK OUT!"

In my peripheral the silver metal of a sword streaked across my vision, a man was swinging a huge blade towards my eyes so quickly that I instinctively released a bloodcurdling scream. I dropped to the ground with my eyes shutting tightly, my world went dark, and I simply waited..

With my sweaty burned palms pressed against my temples I tensed for the incoming pain of a sword stabbing through my back or slicing me, but it never came.

I heard guttural groans and a few cracks of bone, and a new voice; a calm and collected tone intervened and made the pirates around us go quiet.

"So many men ganging up on two girls. Heh, it's pathetic."

"ZORO! YOU FOUND ME?" Cried Luffy suddenly, and with a hesitant pause I cracked one hazel eye open.

I blinked, and saw the floor.

Dirty and dusty tiles filled my vision, and I realized dumbly that I was crouched and that I had practically fell to my knee's and curled into ball from fear.

I jolted up immediately again with my back straight, my face flushed in embarrassment.

I glanced up to a green-haired man a little older than what Luffy seemed to be. Around his waist was a wide green waist band that held two Japanese style swords. I paused in confusion as he held a hand out to me, one sheathed black sword was gripped in his other hand, and for a moment I contemplated to myself. Was he worth trusting? Luffy seemed to know him.

And he did just save me from death. I breathed a sigh of relief, and gingerly took his hand. With one solid pull, I was up on my numb feet. The swordsman's three golden earrings on his one ear jingled lightly, they released a light tinkling sound that contrasted starkly to the harsh growling the pirates around us were emitting from clenched teeth.

With a slight pause I nodded towards him, "T-thank you!" I stuttered, gratefully shaking his hand gently before he let it simply fall back to his side.

"No problem." Was all he murmured nonchalantly, a single shrug of his shoulder. I blinked at him owlishly, wondering what else he was going to say. For the moment Buggy seemed thoughtfully pissed, but his stare towards Zoro was unsettling.

With a puzzled expression being slowly painted on his face, the swordsman spoke again somberly.

"Did you two get hurt any?"

He turned around expectantly towards Nami, "I'm okay." She sighed tiredly with her shoulders heaving. I frowned when Zoro faced me again, looking hopeless I blinked and swallowed hard, "I'm fine, thanks."

He paused a few seconds longer, and I couldn't help but notice that his eyes were somewhat like Luffy's. They were wide and searching, they seemed to observe everything completely with understanding...And to say the least, it was odd. People from my world never looked at others like that.

The Blue, Black, Green or Hazel eyes that I knew were always clouded. They hid their inner judgments of others, they speculated while opinions got twisted around and around.

Conflict, uncertainty, and nervousness always moved like shadows beneath the tresses of color, but I did not see an once of that here.

Nami had those eyes too, she was entirely herself and she knew it. She was a proud person, and Zoro and Luffy were the same. Their eyes held resilience for what they believed. I didn't know what their goals were fully, but their eyes pierced into things in such a strong way that it made me wince as Zoro stared. He was trying to tell if I was lying. He summed up my appearance, disheveled and tired, more tired than an average person should be, but he ended up just shaking his head dismissively.

With a frown the swordsman snapped his head up towards a panicking Luffy, his forehead tensed aggressively.

"Thank goodness you found this place Zoro!" Get me outta this thing quick!" Cackled the boy in the straw hat, his legs bounced up and down restlessly.

Zoro seemed skeptical, "You! Is this your idea of fun?" He scoffed and placed his black sword on his shoulder, "You get carried off by a bird, and now when I find you, you're in a cage?!"

"A-and he got hit by a cannon ball too." I muttered while scratching the back of my head.

The green-haired man snapped his gaze back and forth between Luffy and I incredulously, "EH?! LUFFY YOU IDIOT!"

With a sidewards glance, I noticed Buggy's face was twitching quite badly behind us.

Eh, that could be a problem later on...

Luffy, with eyes squinted and cheeks buffing out he blew a loud and wet raspberry, "Aw Claire!~ Why'd you tell!?"

"Because I felt like it." I retorted calmly, only a hint of uncertainty made in ring into the air, but Luffy only smacked his head in between the bars of his cage, making his face contort.

"You're a piraaate!" Luffy whined and I couldn't help but smile, "You can tell lies." He told me simply.

"W-well I won't tell lies to a crew mate." I nodded to myself, my face was beginning to grow red from the odd stares we were getting from Buggy's crew. Most of their conversations though, was centered around Luffy's mate. They were whispering to one another, hushed tones flew about saying: 'Zoro the pirate hunter?', 'Roronoa Zoro?' and 'Why is he with a thief?'

Zoro's eyes narrowed at his captain, ignoring Buggy's crew easily, "You're an idio- Wait, _crew_ mate?" His voice shot up to express his incredulity.

Luffy nodded excitedly, "Claire and Nami are on our crew now! Nami's gonna be our Navigator and uh-"

He paused and looked at me blankly.

For a good 5 solid seconds.

"Aren't you going to say anything?" I muttered in a peeved tone, and suddenly Luffy's face grew into a huge smile.

"-AND WE GOT CLAIRE TOO!~"

I smacked my face into the back of my hand (my palms were still stinging) and groaned.

"Thanks Luffy."

"Shishishi, you're welcome!"

The pirates around us were dead still as Buggy rose ominously straight with knifes drawn, and Nami; finally registering that we had another ally stomped her way over to me and grabbed my shoulders with rough hands. She began to pry me away from both Buggy and Zoro.

"_Ooh, so you're the famous pirate hunter, Roronoa Zoro eh**!**?" _Growled the blue-haired captain fiercely, he began to twirl his knifes in his hands, his voice was filled with venom,

Arrogantly Zoro began to throw snide remarks to Buggy, and almost instinctively to the two men they eerily began to circle each other. Nami pulled me back muttering about how she didn't like this, things seemed off, and how it wasn't safe.

I personally couldn't agree more, Zoro was remarking how he was only an ex-pirate hunter now. He was a full fledged pirate through and through, but is seemed that Buggy didn't care. He could add another feather to his hat if he killed Zoro and unexpectedly Zoro accepted his unsaid challenge.

"N-Nami what do we do?" I stammered, the fight was unfolding now and Buggy's men were cheering. Zoro placed one of his swords in his mouth with an intense glare and Buggy himself clenched about 6 knifes in-between each finger on both of his hands.

"KILL HIM OFF BUGGY! SEND ZORO TO HIS GRAVE!" Shouted one man from the crowd.

Zoro only huffed, "You asked for it."

And the green-haired man charged, cleanly cutting right through Buggy.

I squeaked and clutched Nami's arm in shock, I was practically hiding behind her again as _**pieces**_ of the blue haired pirate fell to the ground with sickening thumps. Nami clenched her teeth and unconsciously took a step back, _"Oh my god!" _

I snapped my head towards Luffy questioningly for his take on it all as Buggy's arms and legs rolled and settled on the ground. My captains mouth was agape in surprise, "Wow." he exclaimed, "He's weak!"

I scoffed, "W-well obviously!"

I gazed around at Buggy's crew, apprehensive as the sudden silence grew over the roof of the tavern like a thick cloak. A lot of the men began chuckling, and through the crowd I even saw Doctor Hark himself trying to contain his laughing with one hand. Luffy was exclaiming something random behind Nami while I scowled, and even underneath my fingers I felt Nami relax and sigh.

I stepped forward uneasily. My legs felt more unsteady than ever- Painful even as my muscles clamped angrily, my body refusing to_cooperate _with me. I bent foreword with my hands on my knee's, wobbling and swaying drastically. I was definitely tired, my thighs and calf's were terribly sore, and there was more cackling from the crew as I stood back up straight in front of Nami almost protectively. Zoro was sheathing his swords, and taking the one with the white hilt out of his mouth as the Buggy crew giggled disturbingly.

Zoro turned around and strolled his way over towards Luffy's cage past Nami and I. He seemed unperturbed by the laughter going on around him, and that was right of him. We shouldn't have to worry about some weird crew...

Gulping thickly I watched the Buggy crew nervously. Nami herself blanched and stepped away towards Zoro and Luffy, but I couldn't stop myself from glancing towards Buggy's body.

The pieces lay unmoving but the crew was laughing so hard over his death...From that time in the marine ship they seemed so caring about him, they listened to every word he said without question..

I thought they cared..? Or are pirates just that heartless?

From behind me Zoro was commenting on the cage Luffy was in with a bored tone.

"We'll need the key to get you out. I can't cut these steel bars."

Luffy hummed, "Yeah, that makes sense."

I stared in a fixed way at the clowns remains, noting there wasn't even a trace of blood, no guts, there wasn't even a groan from Buggy as he died. My mind screamed that this was unnatural, my mouth didn't want to mouth words, my lungs seized up just like my legs.

Buggy's white gloved hand floated in air as if I suspended by strings for about 2 solid seconds before the limb shot like a bullet towards Zoro.

I of course screamed my lungs out, stumbling back and fall right on my butt as Buggy's crew cheered deafeningly and laughed, "Z-ZORO!" I cried, my left arm shot out on impulse as Zoro's head snapped around and contorted in pain.

Blood seeped from his mouth and I froze, with a loud shout of pain the swordsman fell to his knees. Behind me, Buggy's limbs began to rise into the air and piece themselves together.

"_Yes Roronoa Zoro, I can separate my body parts into pieces and not die.. Swords, daggers, and knifes! Ha! They have no effect on me!"_

Buggy the clown connected fully, as if he had never been cut. He grinned devilishly.

"THE BARA BARA NO MI! THAT'S THE NAME OF THE DEVIL FRUIT I ATE! HAHAHAHAHA!" The blue-haired pirate tilted his head back, laughing at us with all his might. At Zoro's pain.

"N-Nami! What's happening!" I all but screamed, turning around to stare at Nami's ashen face, her eyes narrowed. "I thought devil fruits were only a myth!" She blurted, as if she still couldn't believe it.

I was in confusion, "A d-devil fruit?!"

"Whoa! That guys a monster!" Exclaimed Luffy, and I could only give him a bewildered glance before my focus whipped back to search through my memory. I thought back to that fruit that I was given before I even got here, that disgusting yellow strawberry, but it didn't seem possessed, devilish or even evil! It was probably just rotten, and I don't feel any more powerful at the moment. It's nothing...It has to be a coincidence.

Chuckling, Buggy's eye's glinted mischievously, "Yes, it's true! In exchange for not being able to swim and sinking like an anchor in the ocean, devil fruits are few and far in between and grant great power to those that eat them!"

With a sick smile Buggy tilted his head to one side, "Now! Roronoa Zoro, I may have not hit any of your vital organs, but I'm sure you're feeling a bit weak now! I hope you're prepared to die!"

"YEAH, CAPTAIN BUGGY! KILL EM!"

"KILL THEM ALL!"

"GO GO GO!"

I scrambled backward by using my arms alone, and I winced as my palms dragged along the rough ground in the process, but there was nothing else I could to. I decided to ignore the stinging of my palms as Buggy began to advance.. Luffy roared from behind me, "STABBING FROM BEHIND IS DIRTY! YOU BIG NOSE!"

Nami's voice shrieked, reaching way over the sound range of most men that were here, and probably even my own. "LUFFY YOU IDIOT!-"

And for the second time Buggy's crew froze when their captain clenched his teeth, and held up his knifes threateningly

"Everything's finished! We're dead..." Muttered Nami.

But Luffy obviously had other beliefs."I swear Buggy! I'm going to clobber you!"

Buggy's eyes snapped down to me on the ground and suddenly the air seemed to tense radically, "YOU _BOTH_ HAVE SOME GUTS FOR INSULTING ME!" Spittle flew from his mouth in specks and with every shouted word I flinched back. Deeper and deeper I shrank into myself, falling into what can only be described as false consciousness as fear coursed through me. Wasn't I supposed to be seeing things with clarity?

Buggy raised one of his knife's that was still coated thickly with Zoro's blood far above his head, his shadow cascaded over me.

What was this? Wasn't I supposed to be thinking at super high speeds for self preservation? For a way to get out of this?

The blade glinted in the light and my head began to feel light and dizzy, my breathing hitched as as droplets of blood dripped down onto my clothes.

Buggy really was a killer, there wasn't any hesitation.

"DIE!" Bellowed the clown, and his hand descended...

"N-NO! CLAIRE-CHAN!"

"_SHIT! THAT STUPID CLOWN!"_

"_**CLAAAIRE!"**_

–

"_C-Claire?"_

"_What?"_

"_Why are you like this?" Murmured Penny, her quiet voice was only a tense whisper above the cars AC's hum. Her voice sounded hoarse, dry, and cracked...And instinctively worry and confusion coursed through me. Her tone made her seem as if she had been crying for hours; but her blue eye's were dry, and her cheeks were their regular pink color. Her voice was only slightly muffled by her seat belt as she nuzzled it tensely, holding it in a vice like grip._

_With the crying theory checked off inside of my head, there was only one other reason why she would sound like that. She hadn't been talking..For who knows how long she probably hasn't spoken a word, to anyone..._

_I frowned angrily, tucking away the guilt as I snapped at her, "You don't understand Penny! And neither does mom or dad!"_

"_Y-your friends are mean though! Why would you be friends with them? A-and whenever they come over y-you just-" Her voice broke into tiny pieces, and I just glared expectantly through the rear-view mirror. Penny shrank, growing smaller and smaller in her seat. She was receding into herself, quieting and hushing her own thoughts. War raged behind her watery eyes."-You tell me to go upstairs after you pick me up from school. You've been fighting with mom and dad! H-How come I can't hang out with you Claire?"_

"_You- " My eyes narrowed to the point where I had to glare pointedly at the car in front of me. I was getting tired. I was getting so angry at these constant interrogations by my family. They needed to butt out!_

"_-You'll just embarrass me! And besides; if you stayed downstairs you wouldn't even know what my friends and I would be talking about!"_

"_B-but you're my big sister!-"_

"_I am! So you'll listen to me when I say, I don't want you around, Penny!"_

_There was a tense gasp and I only tightened my grip on the wheel. I didn't comfort her. I never said I was sorry._

"_Y-your hurting my feelings!"_

_Tears streaked now down her face now, like the raindrops that splashed upon the car windows. Like shooting stars in the sky, they fell and raced towards the ground. To crash. With the influence of some bitchy girls from school so domineering with the way they controlled others, I had become a stake in the chest of my own family. With every bad example that my so called friends got away with I craved more, I was that teenager who had everything, and took it for granted. I was the **knife** that drove down and shattered a family, taking one daughter away by an accident and leaving my own body incapable of walking._

_I snorted with venom thick in my tone, "You think I care?!"_

_Not even a sob escaped out of Penny's lips..She was gone inside of her already destructively self conscious mind. She was going to start making promises to herself again, to never do this, and to never do that. So she wouldn't disappoint others and embarrass herself...I knew because once upon a time, she told me these things. She told me how sometimes it felt like words ran away from her, for her to voice her thoughts was like walking on a tightrope. She had a problem that I honestly never thought people had, and after that, the silence that followed Penny around like a satellite was deafening.._

"_**Y-you! You, a little girl, ate a devil fruit!?"**_ Buggy hissed angrily, each word sounded like it was bitten in two and spat through clenched teeth. I was shaking like a leaf with my locked elbows shaking from the amount of fright I was experiencing.

My eyes were tightly shut against the sun and the killer clown in front of me. The intense paranoia I felt was preventing me from even exhaling; my chest felt tight. Another emotion deep inside of me blocked out all the physical feelings, my mind forgot them. Only raw curiosity flourished and prickled.

_What did he mean? _

_Why hasn't he stabbed me yet?_

"HEEHEE! THAT'S AWESOME!"

That was Luffy.

"W-what the heck is that?"

Mr. Zoro.

"CLAIRE! OPEN YOUR EYES!"

Nami.

I blurted out, with my voice cracking "I-I DON'T THINK I WANT TO!" Uncertainly thickly dripped from my voice, and soon Buggy was snarling so close to my proximity that it was making me fight the urge to yell at him to stay away. His grunts of effort were distracting me, it sounded like he was attacking someone. Was someone fighting him again? It all seemed pretty one sided.

I cracked open my eyes, barely squinting against the sun, when I saw yellow.

For a moment I was reminded of Macaroni and cheese..Buggy's whole shape and color was distorted through this glass shield, and it was effectively cutting me off from Buggy. It was taking his blows, without a sound or a quiver from the blows. It was protecting me.

Buggy was slicing with all his might at this transparent, yellow, and lumpy _thing_ that was blocking me from his attacks, and he was getting angrier by the second.

"ZORO! NOW! RUN!" Cried Luffy, and with a slight pause from Buggy I scrambled up onto my feet again and scampered over to my crew with Zoro sprinting passed me. The little barrier crumbled on itself and disappeared, and my sudden defenselessness made Nami growl and snatch me by the arms and haul me closer.

To say the least, I was overjoyed to be back near the sidelines again..

Zoro dodged every attack by Buggy deftly, sometimes by inches or maybe centimeters, and to my confusion and worry he wasn't making it towards the exit on the left hand side of the building. He sprinted towards the cannon and began to heave with blood spouting from his wound. With one huge grunt he flipped it over, the thick metal slammed on the ground and created a hollow ding when the barrel shook.

"I NEED A LIGHT!" The swordsmen yelled, as Buggy and his crew began to scream in shock and they stumble back.

And at the swordsman's shout I began to pat myself down frantically. I reached to dig into my back pocket and scrounged around to whip around to hand Nami the match I had kept.

Not even hesitating, but shaking her head in confusion Nami sprinted towards the cannon, and with one swift swipe of her hand against the cannons rough base the match's tip grew a flame.

"STOP IT!" Roared Buggy, and without an ounce of hesitation Nami lit the cannon's fuse. The shouting of Buggy's crew blended into one huge cry that sounded like they were saying, 'DUCK' but I wasn't quite sure.

The cannon ball shot right into the crowd of Buggy's pirates, kicking up a huge screen of dust and smoke.

Grunting while holding his bleeding wound Zoro spat, "We should go...Who are you guys anyways" The green-haired man gave Nami and I questioning looks.

"I'm...A thief." confirmed Nami, and then there was myself, just barely able to hold myself up anymore by this point. I nodded like a bobble head toy. "And I'm Claire Steele. Nice to meet you."

The man nodded, and heaved himself up from the ground. "Roronoa Zoro." He introduced gruffly, and rested one arm against Luffy's cage.

I sighed, "I'm not sure how we can escape this with Luffy in that cage- We need to find that key!"

Luffy smiled, "Well Zoro, at least we have Nami as our Navigator...And Claire!"

And_ oh man_, with that comment Nami stepped forward, looking livid. I myself edged closer to Zoro and tried to hold myself back from fretting over his wound. It was bleeding badly at this point, and it wouldn't be long before he passed out or died from blood lose.

"You're an idiot, you know that?! You need to start thinking of ways to get out of that cage?!" Growled Nami as she threw her arms down angrily.

"Hey!~" Exclaimed Luffy, "Good idea Nami!"

And his optimism only served to piss the thief off even more, if that were possible. I shook my head as Buggy's shouts of anger raised in pitch behind us. The pirate was getting more urgent by the moment and Nami seemed to feel the same, she bit her lip angrily.

Zoro finally spoke, his voice sounded quite confident as he stood up gingerly."No, it's okay. You just stay in that cage, Luffy!"

The green-haired man gripped the bars of Luffy's cage and began to heave.

And to my surprise he actually lifted it up onto his shoulders.

"M-rm. Zoro! Please that won't be good for your wound!" I squeaked worriedly with my arms waving about. Blood did spurt out of his cut under the weight of the metal cage and Luffy himself, but Zoro only grunted. He pulled the cage even higher.

"Zoro! Your guts will squirt out if you do this!"

"OI! Don't tell me what to do! I'll do this my own way!"

He lifted the cage to rest it on his shoulder as veins in his arms became increasingly more visible. I merely watched in shock as Nami also tried to stop the swordsman from injuring himself further, but he was stubborn.

"**Don't give me any lip about it! Now follow us now or go your own way!" **

"Just be careful then-" I offered, and stepped closer to the men to offer my support in presence alone.

"WHERE ARE THEY?! THAT STRAW HAT KID?!"

"FIND THEM NOW!"

The shouting now was getting more frantic, and figures were lithely moving behind the screen of dust. They were beginning to search for us.

Nami stepped away uneasily. She put more distance in between the caged boy and herself, and it seemed she had made her decision. She was going to leave.

"Be careful Nami." I muttered as she gave us one last glance and sprinted away into the smoke.

"Whaat?! Nami's leaving?!" Shouted Luffy, he obviously wasn't pleased with this.

"S-she might meet back up with us." I suggested hopefully as Zoro grunted and nodded towards the edge of the building. He wanted me to follow behind him and hesitantly I did. Between the thick smoke wafting closer to us I nervously clenched one of my hands onto a bar on Luffy's cage and crept noiselessly behind the duo when we traveled off of the taverns roof.

I followed these two without a second thought. The Straw Hat boy himself was frowning terribly, he was trying to struggle against the bars that held him in confinement, and every now and then he was looking between Zoro and I, and then would go back to cursing the cage.

I escaped with the two within a few minutes. We shimmied down onto the ledge of the roof of the tavern and crossed onto the building to our left. The space in between the two buildings was so small that it was barely a couple of inches, and after that we were basically Scott-free. The Buggy pirates searched the tavern and the streets below, but were too angry to concentrate on the surrounding buildings.

For the moment we were safe.

While the Buggy pirates shouted and screamed about our disappearance we hid in one of the gaps on the neighboring roofs ledge. Understandably Zoro sat down for a rest, and I was trying not to slid butt first off of the ledge. I sat on Luffy's other side while he tried to break the bars of the cage.

"Dammit!" Luffy spat, "If this cage would just open!...Open!" The straw hat boy furiously shook back and forth, trying to get free, but it wasn't doing any good. Zoro sighed tiredly with one arm rested on Luffy's cage, while I lifted my head slightly to get a good look at the contraption itself.

"I don't think you can _will_ it open at this point Luffy, but this towns abandoned...Maybe we can find some tools to break this thing open?" I offered that thought weakly, but it least it was an idea we could fall back on.

Luffy himself didn't comment, but at least settled down a bit, and Zoro was now staring at the streets below in concentration. "We're in a fine mess here, but I guess we have to finish what we started."

Luffy nodded his eyes never once loosing their focus. His resilience and Zoro's determination empowered me some—if only by a tiny bit.

I nodded as well, and clenched my teeth in concentration.

With a heave and a lot of patience I stood up again.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Hey guys! Hope you enjoyed the chapter, and I am sorry you had to wait a little bit to get it!~ X]

REVIEWS ARE APPRECIATED! Tell me what you think!


	10. Faint

STEPS © ChidoriShiori  
One Piece © Eiichiro Oda

** STEPS**

**Disclaimer**: I do not own One Piece. I only own this story, my character, and this here plot.

**CHAPTER NINE**

Faint**  
**

* * *

For a long time not a word was spoken between the three of us.

Zoro grunted, Luffy struggled and whined to the unresponsive metal bars of his cage, and I was staggering so unsteadily that from a distance- it probably seemed as if I was trying to have a swagger by how my legs just wouldn't seem to follow my commands.

The dusty wind blew gently and the scent of trees and the salty ocean was overpowering for my sensitive nose. I was glad for the salty odor though, my sweaty skin and dirty clothes probably reeked by now, but I only smelled the Ocean. As far as I knew the reason for my non-stinkyness was from when I was in the water drowning. Being near it for so long now had drenched me in the scent of the sea. My eyes narrowed, I will swear to myself now, at the first chance I get near some soap and water I will take it like the pirate I am and pillage said soap vigorously...or ravish it!

Or something pirate-y like that. Violence

"Uh, so you're a swordsman Zoro?" I asked uneasily, my fingers messed with the sleeves of my blouse as I walked beside the bleeding green-haired man, and my pirate captain that was again biting the bars of his metal cage...

"And you're a pirate?" Zoro countered as he raised one eyebrow to his hairline that was drenched in sweat. A small smile was on his face, and no matter how tiny it was- that little twitch at the corner of his lip, it was a greatly appreciated gesture for me. This tall swordsman was definitely intimidating, but he had saved me from certain death and I could tell he was having trouble keeping that comforting smile there to stay positive.

I felt that prick of guilt again.

There wasn't anything I could do to help this guy, and between the three of us no one had any medical supplies. He was bleeding badly while hauling his buddy around inside of a metal cage, in a deserted town, while being chased by a band of pirates.

I wasn't superman, or a super special healer that knew everything about helping others, and it made my stomach twist tighter and tighter into a heavy lead ball at the infuriating thought of my uselessness. With more walking even, to my irritation I was growing more tired by the step, unused to the exorcise.

Even before my accident, I wasn't the most athletic person, let alone a person who practiced any kind of sport.

With a grimace I glanced at the Swordsman's wound again for what seemed like the millionth time in the past ten minutes. Zoro's white shirt was soaked near the hip with that familiar red color of blood, and his left hand was pressed against the wound itself.

"I guess." I murmured thoughtfully, still cautious as could be about this man's condition and really beginning to worry. For all Luffy and I knew, he could drop dead at any minute. He could pass out or get an infection later on.

Although in retrospect he didn't seem _that_ concerned about it in contrast to myself, but that didn't reassure me any, and that was probably the most jarring thing about these two.

They seemed to downplay a lot of things.

"Well, we're now quite a bit away from the tavern." Remarked Zoro in a tired manner. "They won't be able to catch up for a while..."

The green-haired man's dark eyes narrowed at the road in front of us, "We escaped okay, but this cage is starting to annoy the hell out of me."

"Yeah! This stupid cage!" Luffy grouched, "If this thing doesn't open soon—When the bad guys come I won't be able to fight them!"

…

"Wait-" I paused in confusion, a very small ghost of a smile on my lips, "You call these men _bad guys_ even though you're both- I mean, _we_ are pirates?"

Luffy paused slightly with his mouth open, and his expression twisted in confusion comically. "Uhh...Well they are bad!" He stuck out his tongue as if the thought of them made a rotten taste form in his mouth.

I chuckled quietly as Luffy stubbornly chewed on the bars of his cage again, "I guess you're right."

And when I turned to look up at Zoro's reaction- my smile fell. His face was covered with droplets of sweat and with a pained moan he really began to sway, "This is it..." He said ominously.

"W-what?" I stuttered.

My eyes widened dramatically when he groaned again, "What's it? What's IT?"

With a startled squeak I realized what this guy was going to do, and I didn't like it one bit. My arms shot up to grasp his shoulders as he began to fall forward, and I awkwardly tried to keep him upright as he fell to his knees.

"Z-Zoro!" I all but squealed in fright as I dug my feet in the ground and slid pathetically across the dirt.

"I've lost too much blood...Can't walk any longer." The swordsman moaned, his face scrunched in exhaustion.

"Well I can SEE that!" I spat, and then I was on my knees beside Zoro with my arms draped around him in a terrible bear hug as he grew slacker and _slacker_.

I, on the other hand was trying to get a good grasp on Zoro's chest and shoulders while I frowned terribly. The thought of what this must have looked like made me contemplate on dropping him like he was a hot pocket just out of the microwave—Since it was probably a mix of me trying to mug Zoro or cop a feel, and I was just **_so_** tempted to leave him where he was out of sheer _embarrassment_, but I continued to try and _help_.

_Cuz-I'm-such-a-good-person-OHYESIAM!_

"Ohhononono please! Come on, you can do it!"

Albeit with a long bout of groping to get a good grip on this sweaty, muscly guy I wasn't having much luck.

"Z-Zoro?!" Cried Luffy from his cage as my attempt to hold up his friend failed and my knee's buckled beneath me.

We both fell in the dirt face first.

Zoro landed on his cheek with arms spread eagle and a hollow groan ghosting from his lips, while my own forehead slammed into the ground with my arms still wrapped around the injured swordsman's shoulders.

…

I bit by lip in irritation as Zoro apologized tiredly, but to me he didn't seem to mean it.

I just released my grip around his shoulders, slipping my arms away from the man, and pouted into the dirt sullenly, "Whatever maaan."

"ARF!"

…

"Luffy...did you just bark?" I asked incredulously, not even bothering to look up, but musing to myself that if he was the one that barked—I was willing to say that he was pretty good at sounding like a chihuahua or a terrier. Zoro moved slightly beside me to look up himself, apparently not _too_ tired to not be able to lift his head.

"Urgh, whats with the dog?" He asked in irritation, and more shuffling sounded next to me.

"C-can I get some help? I w-wanna see the dog too." I begged pathetically, and without a word Zoro hoisted me up by the back of my shirt and let me blink up owlishly at a shaggy white dog not even two feet away to us.

"Huh, it is a dog!" Remarked Luffy, now sitting upright like me in his cage and trying to shove his head through the bars. Zoro let go of the back of my shirt to shuffle against a little pillar on a building next to us and simply held his wound tiredly.

Luffy tilted his head to the side while I got comfortable on the ground next to my captain's cage, slouching on it myself.

"Hey Zoro, Claire- This dog isn't moving much."

Zoro shook his head, "What it does is up to the dog." And with that incredibly logical comment being said by Zoro I eagerly agreed with him. I tapped lightly on the cages metal bars, making Luffy glance at me curiously as I reminded him again, "You should start thinking of ways to get out of this thing, not messing with dogs."

...

Not even listening, Luffy poked the dogs eyes square in the pupils, "Think it's dead?"

And in a movement that made me jolt back, the dog growled viciously and bit Luffy's face. Sharp white white teeth streaked so quickly towards Luffy it was all I could do just not squeal in worry.

"L-Luffy! That thing could have Rabies or something!" I exclaimed shrilly, scooting farther away from the dog and the cage and causing Zoro to get really get red in the face and shout at us. "STOP IT! DON'T YOU REALIZE HOW SERIOUS THIS SITUATION IS?!"

Blood spurted from Zoro's wound in effort, and I cringed harshly at thought of how high his blood pressure must be to make the liquid have so much...Distance.

After a bit more hopeless fighting and sharp biting from both Luffy and the dog, the two finally paused in their antics to look at Zoro expectantly.

"Sorry Zoro." Luffy and I murmured demurely, albeit Luffy smacked the dog offhandedly again and made it start growling like a motorcycle.

"Urgh, Stupid dog!" Grouched Luffy.

"I'm tired." I sighed.

"And I don't have enough blood."

And I had to glance at Zoro worriedly again—and not because he was losing a lot of blood still, but because he sounded like he was talking about his experience of losing a sock.

Not like it's not an equally bad situation or anything...

With another sigh I looked towards the sky for sympathy. My hands were pressed on the ground and for the moment I realized that my palms no longer stung, they barely prickled without any real pain.

I held my right hand in front of my face while thinking somberly. The skin on my palms were still pretty red, and on my left arm I had tiny cuts and a few old bruises from the entire 'spazzing out in my new car' fiasco. But as upper bodies go, I was still safe and strong. The only problem for me now was that it was getting increasingly harder to stand up and sit down, walking was making my feet hurt. Hunger and thirst were beginning to fade into dull aches, and I wanted a bath.

I don't know how much longer I'll last with this goose chase, but we needed to get out of this town as soon as Luffy was out of his cage, and I needed to get back home.

I dropped to the ground to lay on my back, mimicking Luffy and Zoro and not feeling an ounce of self consciousness for it. I stared at the sky for a few moments before letting my eyes droop and close.

It was actually really comfortable.

...

"_What do you think you guys are doing?"_

Nami?

I opened my eyes reluctantly, and it was true, the orange-haired girl was staring down at us with the most exasperated expression I have ever seen on anyone's face.

"Our Navigator?" Asked Luffy and Zoro curiously, their heads shot up innocently to gaze in wonder at their other female crew mate, and it only took a millisecond for Nami to become furious with the two.

"SAYS WHO?!" She waved her arms wildly, "You idiots! You'll be found by Buggy's crew if you lay in the middle of the street like this!"

And I smiled instinctively at her tone, she sounded worried about us!

"I'm glad you're okay Nami!" I chirped cheerfully, and while gazing up at her with a small half smile on my face she deflated almost immediately.

Her anger was wiped clean from her expression, and more importantly her eyes relaxed to a softer tone, and a hopeless twitch began quirking her lips as she slouched her shoulders.

"T-thanks, but listen- I came to repay my debt to you guys because you saved my life back there." Our navigator held up a plain key with one finger, her other hand rested on her hip as she sighed.

"I know this will probably be a mistake later, seeing how I couldn't steal any treasure because of this..."

"Ah! The key! You got the key for the cage!" Yelled Luffy in happiness, and even Zoro grinned a little from his spot on the ground.

I, however, was confused by this, "H-hey, the only reason we need that key is because you turned Luffy in. Meaning you got him in that cage in the first place, and-"

Nami's eyes turned devious and glinting, "Claire-chan!~ Do you want this apple I _found_?"

I didn't even pause, "Yes _please_ Nami! You're so nice."

Zoro's eye brow twitched noticeably as I sat up and gratefully took the wonderful red apple from Nami's out stretched hand. I couldn't remember the last time I ate real food. "O-oi Claire, you took that too fast." Muttered Zoro, and I couldn't help but wince.

"I'm hungry." I retorted weakly, taking a good bite of the side of the apple and immediately loving how I suddenly felt energetic again.

"Claire- I'm hungry too!" Whined Luffy, giving me hude puppy dog eyes, or at least attempting to. I admitted honestly that I didn't feel sorry for him. He had an entire slab of meat while on the taverns roof, and plus—His expression wasn't effective when a real dog was sitting right there next to him.

"I can't remember how many days since I've eaten real food, so sorry Luffy."

Nami tossed the key in the middle of our little group, and it clattered on the ground with a few 'tinks' coming from the metal. It skidded in front of the off white colored dog and for a moment Luffy simply cheered, while the dog blinked at the key lazily, and then swallowed it.

And before I could say something like, _"Oh no! That won't be healthy for it!~" _

Luffy had his hands around the mutts throat and was squeezing as the pooch began to bark in protest.

"WHY YOU DUMB DOG-"

"L-LUFFY THAT'S ANIMAL ABUSE! DON'T HURT THE POOR THING LIKE THAT!"

"BUT HE SWALLOWED THE KEY! SPIT IT OUT DOG! NOW!"

"_O-OI YOU WHIPPER SNAPPERS! LET GO OF SHUSHU!"_

My eyes widened as my crew and I, yes including Nami, turned to stare at an old man with armor on about 15 feet away. His hair was a silvery white and came out in weird puffs on the top of his head, and he even had a spear strapped to his back.

And knowing that I was in a world of pirates, marines, and humongous lions I was flabbergasted yet again.

"Wow." I mumbled, and before I could stop myself I asked in complete wonder, "A-are you like, a knight mister?"

This question immediately made Luffy's expression brighten into pure wonder and fascination.

"OOHH?!~ A KNIGHT!"

"You guys have turned out to be two pea's in a pod.." Grumbled Zoro, to which I retorted quite seriously, "Out of the four of us, you're the one who looks like a pea..."

"O-Oi."

The old man stared at us warily as Nami hit the back of my head with a groan, and I just so happened to drop my apple in the process.

.-.-.-.-.-.-.

"A-Are you sure this is alright Mister?" I asked quietly as Zoro and I walked further away from Luffy and Nami and down a short path that led to the Chief's house.

The Chief of this village (The 'not' knight) gave a humble smile towards Zoro and I, being in the lead of the group he had to tilt his head back towards us slightly to be seen. "Yes dear-" The old man answered kindly, "You and your friend the swordsman look quite tired. I don't mind if you use my house to rest."

I was one wobbly step behind the swordsman and Zoro was right behind the old man as he opened the brown door of his cute little house in a grand manner. His smile faltered a tiny bit as he stepped inside his home and motioned for us to come in.

"Although I must tell you again so my conscience can be clear.. You should retreat to our villages safe area, it is more than welcome to you. There's food and water being supplied there as well." He held the door open as he cautioned us.

Zoro simply grunted, not perturbed and probably not even considering the Chief's offer. "Thanks, but I know I only need to sleep."

"Uh," Started the Chief, understandably surprised by Zoro's answer and glancing at the swordsman's wound himself, "B-But you're terribly wounded."

"I just need some sleep and I'll be fine." Repeated the green haired man calmly, and I smiled reassuringly to the poor old guy. "I'm getting used to this logic too, but do you by chance have some bandages?"

The Chief's skin around his eyes crinkled slightly as he smiled, "Yes! I shall get them!" The old man nodded once and strode over to a small squeaky wooden cabinet to find them.

I turned to Zoro seriously, "Sit down and I'll-"

"I just need sleep."

I frowned, "You need your wounds bandaged _and_ sleep, Mr. Zoro."

More than anything this seemed to trouble him the most, he was obviously a man that led an independent life. His eyes narrowed to tiny slits with his features grimacing with discomfort.

"I think I know what I need."

"...I think I know you need bandages. You'll bleed out in your sleep and then go into another form of sleep called _death_ if you don't let me help. Please."

He glared, and even with my morals spuring me to stand my ground, I broke down within three seconds and looked away to the floor.

Chief meandered back to us and handed me the badges, to which I stared at blankly.

At my expression, Zoro rolled his eyes. "Give them to me." He huffed, holding out a hand expectantly with a annoyed expression on his tanned face.

I handed him the little bundle of soft wraps, and he sat down on a squeaky little bed with an intense expression on his face.

"Thanks Zoro." I offered with a tiny smile as he began to unwrap the white cloth.

"Hn. I'm tired so I'm only going to dress it as I see fit."

He made a point to look me in the eye, "And then I'm sleeping, got it."

I nodded, chuckling nervously, "Yes. That's all I'm asking of you."

I heaved a long yawn and I found myself also craving sleep like the grouchy swordsman. Despite my aching legs that were screaming in protest from the effort of walking and running around so much this past day, I felt like I could pass out at any second

"You make yourself comfy too, Claire-chan. I don't have another bed, but your more than welcome to anything in the house."

Surprised, I glanced over to the Chief, and he seemed to be mentally preparing himself before walking back out into the streets. His lips were drawn tight, as well as his forehead as he straightened out his armor and fixed the spear strapped across his back. He stood in his little kitchen, looking around at his home, as if checking to see if everything was in order before he left.

I gave a firm nod of my head, giving him my best look that said I was thankful, and to be polite I stayed where I was, glancing between the Chief and Zoro; who was now laying on his back with his eyes closed and stomach bandaged.

"I guess I'll be going back to your friends."

The Chief, with his back straight and shoulders back, looking both confident and proud he practically marched to his door and gave me a little wave. "Rest up now, who knows what might come to us next." After a hesitant nod to the both of us I suddenly felt immensely grateful to this man and called out hesitantly, "Thank you again for your kindness, Mr. chief!"

We both smiled, albeit grimly, and Mr. chief shut the door gently.

With a glance to the swordsman, resting in the bed across the room from me I silently groaned at the prospect of moving my feet again. I closed my eyes, feeling every ounce of sleepiness and stress towering on my shoulders, but with intense effort I shuffled my feet and began a search for a glass in the small kitchen.

It didn't take me long, since after all the brown, wood tarnished cabinets were small and packed together above the sink. I only picked the biggest glass the Chief had and slipped it beneath the sinks tap.

I turned the faucet a couple of time to the right.

I turned it to the left.

And not a single drop of water fell into my cup.

I stood there for a moment, thinking about how Buggy's cannon balls must have had so much power that they could have busted water pipes in the town.

I put the cup into the cupboard slowly and carefully, without even gaining a tiny 'tink' from the glass and I relaxed into a chair across the room from the swordsman.

Only Zoro's light snore's could be heard from the tiny house, and I finally let exhaustion steal my consciousness away from me.

-.-.-.-.-.

My dreams, if you could even call them that were not fabricated of quality material and they were not even slightly entertaining.

I heard snoring half the time in my semi-conscious dream world, and I only seemed to acknowledge that it annoyed me, but I didn't care enough to wake up or throw something at the swordsman. I simply must have been so tired, physically and mentally, that I instantly went into REM sleep or something. So deep a sleep, that the only things I saw were my worries, and the only things I felt were the aching of my legs and head.

I dreamed a bit of mom and dad, and how they must be worried about me. My parent's faces forever ingrained in my mind, whether their expressions be worried, sad, or happy.

After my parents I immediately dreamed of Penny. My train of thought usually always tracing back to her...

Then it would go to the accident.

Sometimes it would turn into that same old replay of that same old nightmare but then again, sometimes I would simply watch it all play out, over and over, from a cold distance...

Then there was this whistling sound, like Zoro's snoring it was starting to irritate me.

It just started to whine from a distance and-

Everything was falling and crashing. My eyes snapped open upon the sound of wood snapping loudly, of windows shattering, and of beams breaking in two as the house's foundation was destroyed. I woke up screaming, and jerked out of my seat with my legs immediately buckling beneath me uselessly as the walls and ceiling collapsed onto me. I hit the ground and shaken from the sudden explosion of sound and falling objects around me.

"_CLAIRE AND ZORO WERE IN THERE!"_

"_MY HOUSE!"_

… Everything quieted down.

It was dark.

There was a pressure, a heavy weight on my shoulders, but it seemed distant.

Distant.

I was confused now, and pretty worried. I felt no rough wood on my skin, only wood chips dug into my palms...

But what was this weight?

Was Zoro okay?

Panic flushed through me, and I quivered like a leaf from the dread...And this weight-

It was pushing me down alright, but I knew instinctively I couldn't relax, I couldn't dare to.

And maybe because the ceiling fell onto Zoro and I? Would it really be bad if I relaxed?

_Dark. It's dark and cramped._ I was blinking, but it was still really dim, dust floated around me and I coughed loudly as the wood around me creaked in protest.

"CLAIRE! YOU IN THERE!?" It was Luffy, and his voice was muffled.

"Y-yeah!"

It was instantaneous, I heard loud grunting from Luffy and the scratching of something on dirt. The weight was diminishing slowly, light spread and made me squeeze my eyes shut from it's brightness and the debris in the air.

"Ugh! Found you!" Luffy's voice was clear now, and I heard Nami gasp near us. I rubbed my eyes vigorously, feeling suddenly woozy.

"What a relief you two are alive!" Cheered Luffy, and I could tell by Nami's voice that she was probably as confused as me.

"How is that even possible?" She asked, tone high and suddenly a little panicked.

"I don't knooow, how did I even-"

"Claire, you got this yellow thing around you! IT'S SO COOL!"

I cringed and wilted against the ground, and strangely I felt more hopeless than before. "Lets use our inside voice, Luffy..."

"HAHA! CAN'T USE THAT, THERE'S NO HOUSE LEFT!"

"Oi, you wipper snapper, that's my house your talkin' about." Chief?

"Claire, did you eat a devil fruit by chance?" Asked Nami, not sounding frightened any more, but sounding so concerned that suddenly, I felt that I had to be worried now too. Was there something wrong with me?

"Must have!," Chuckled Luffy, seemingly proud by whatever was around me.

I growled, "I can't see-So much dust!"

Luffy ignored me of course, "What is this thing anyway?"

Removing my hand away from my face, I opened my eyes blearily.

Immediately I saw Zoro, on the ground not to far from me he was rubbing his head. It was good that he was okay, and although that would have been normal considering the circumstance, but his white shirt has gained a pale yellow tint. In fact everything did.

"I don't feel good." I shook my head, turning to sit on my butt and to look up at Luffy, who was also looking quite yellow through this veil that was between myself and everything around me.

Luffy poked it with a wide smile on his face, and it was like a soap bubble. It stretched a little, the little shield around me barely bent, and I blinked, feeling dazed, panicked now, and light head, and it was gone.

I breathed in deeply even though it felt as though I couldn't get enough oxygen anyway, while turning to look at Nami who had a wide eyed, deer caught in the headlights expression on her face.

"...You guys are weird." She huffed with her hands by her sides, and Luffy only laughed in reply as I started breathing a bit too hurriedly, my vision swirling, and before I even realized it- I was out.

-.-.-.-.-.

"Ah-" Started Luffy, patting his hat that was resting on the top of his head with one hand.

"She passed out."

…

Nami, closing her eyes in irritation, and with her fingers pinching the bridge of her nose she nodded to herself. "I wouldn't blame her. She's probably been through a lot today."

"Eh, she got to sleep a bit. She should be fine by now! You too Zoro!" Luffy pointed at his first mate with one accusatory finger. In return he only received a withering glare.

"Claire isn't obviously a monster, like you two." Nami marched forward towards Claire's limp form and with care, bent down and brushed a strand of brown hair from her flushed cheek.

"Kehehehe! I only saw a glimpse of her power on the roof of the Tavern! I got such a cool crew! A swordsman, a-" He paused in thought.

….

"Uhuh?" goaded Nami, despite her internal war that was telling her not to...

"Ah! Right!" With a new-found grandeur the Straw hat boy spread his arms above his head and yelled, "A girl that can make bubble's! And a NAVIGATO-"

"HNNG! IT FEELS AS THOUGH MY CHEST IS BEING SCRAPED OUT!" Bellowed the chief, his hand coming to slam upon his armored chest.

Talk about sudden outbursts. For once even Luffy was surprised, and he blinked in a bewildered manner.

"CHEIF!" Nami called out to him in concern, as she snapped her head back to the angry Town mayor, holding Claire Steele's head upon her knee's.

"DO YOU THINK I'LL ALLOW PIRATES TO TRAMPLE ALL OVER US AGAIN?!"

The chief was growing more furious by the second, his head was tilted downward, with all his might he tried to contain his frustration and guilt.

"THIS BUGGY-" He chocked.

"THIS BUGGY GUY HAS NO RIGHT! I AM CHIEF! I WON'T LEAVE AND LET THIS VILLAGE BE TREATED THIS WAY!" The white haired old man thrusted his arms into the air with his spear in hand.

"I-I'M GOING TO FIGHT!" He roared suddenly, taking off into a dead sprint in the direction of Buggy.

"W-Wait! Chief!" Warned Nami, getting up swiftly and leaving Claire's side to rush to the Mayor.

"L-LET GO OF ME CHILD!"

Without hesitation Nami, with brown eyes blazing countered, "YOU CAN'T! YOU WON'T DEFEAT HIM!"

"I KNOW IT'S RECKLACE!"

…

The chief, with tears in his eyes stopped suddenly, conviction and worry was clearly weighing upon his conscious. Nami visibly flinched, only a few steps behind him he turned slowly and sprinted off again.

"I'LL GET YOU BUGGY THE CLOWN!"

Somewhat stricken with surprise, the Navigator gulped. "The Chief...he looked like he was crying."

"Really? I didn't see a thing..." Said Luffy offhandedly, a sly grin stretching his lips.

The captain crouched down to Claire, the full blown smile on his face as Zoro smirked.

"For some reason, this seems to be getting more fun."

"Heeheehee! I agree!"

With an angry scoff, the orange-haired navigator snapped her head towards Luffy, eyebrows furrowed and fist's clenched. "How can you still laugh?!"

Another giggle bubbled up from Luffy's throat as if thoroughly amused by her anger. He didn't even flinch at her tantrum, "Don't worry. I like that old man! I'm not going to let that him die.

At this Nami exploded,

"How can you just stand there laughing? What do you get out of this anyway?!" The tangerine lover's whole body bent forward from the force of her shout.

"Wha'sat?! Why is everyone shouting? Shtop f'ighting." A drowsy voice floated up from the ground, and Claire blinked up at them, eyes half lidded.

"OI! CLAIRE! YOU'RE AWAKE! THAT WAS A QUICK NAP!" Hooted Luffy cheerfully.

Zoro rubbed his forehead as Claire tried to sit up without much success, "You didn't miss much..."

Unsure, the brunette blinked to where her vision cleared. "O-okay..."

With a confident nod Luffy held up his hand towards Nami, "We're headed for the Grand Line! We'll steal that map back, and then we can go there together!"

He grinned now and Claire was looking between the two blankly as Luffy continued: "Join up with us! You want the map and all that treasure right? And you can help Claire too!"

Affronted, but obviously a little conflicted, Nami clenched her teeth. "I won't become a Pirate!"

With Zoro and Claire gazing at the two from their spot on the ground, a resounding slap came from the navigator and Luffy's hands as they clapped together in agreement. Nami glared, "Let's just say we'll join forces!"

At this Claire turned towards Zoro with a flabbergasted expression plastered on her face.

"What do you mean I didn't miss much? W-Where's Chief?"

Zoro blinked in a bored way. "We're going to get him in a bit. He ran off."

"...And why is everything destroyed again?"

"Buggy."

"Uhuh." Claire nodded dumbly, brown hair swinging slightly from beneath her yellow bandana.

Claire's words were a bit slurred, but with concentration she was forming them more clearly in her mind.

"What did Nami just agree too?"

"To be in our crew...For the time being." At this Zoro glanced up at Nami with a distrustful grimace.

Claire paused, looking down at the ground, "I-I have one more question..."

Zoro nodded, "What?"

"Why is your hair green?"

A huge snort exploded from Nami, and she turned away from the three pirates to hide her grin.

"Heeheeheehee!" Luffy began giggling hysterically, and he clapped one hand over his mouth as Zoro's expression darkened tenfold and he stabbed glares at both his captain and Claire.

"Sorry." Claire apologized, although she didn't sound sorry, "I'm still a bit dazed..."

* * *

Review


	11. Heavy Thoughts

STEPS © ChidoriShiori  
One Piece © Eiichiro Oda

** STEPS**

**Disclaimer**: I do not own One Piece. I only own this story, my character, and this here plot.

**CHAPTER TEN**

**Heavy Thoughts**

* * *

I was a more than a little confused, more than a little light headed, and my calves were so tender I was afraid of tearing something if I moved a certain way.

"Can you stand up Claire?" Queried Nami in concern. She stepped forward with a graceful precision to offer a hand to me, highly wary of the broken glass and nails from the wreckage on the ground. Her eyes were shimmering slightly and I knew it was from the chief running off like he did, Nami was certainly a striking individual, but she was without a doubt level headed and compassionate. I wanted to say something to her to maybe make her feel better but I was sure I wasn't going to say anything she didn't already know.

I took her hand gently with a soft grip, but that was pretty much all I could do. I tried to stretch and stand, but I only managed to shift my legs and wobble uneasily before landing on my butt in defeat. I sighed and released her hand, staying on the ground soaking in my guilt, and unable to move my legs without any results.

"Uhm, to be honest I-I dunno if I can go with you guys. Running and fighting isn't in my range of ability right now...Or it never really was, but it's even worse now." Tilting my head back and groaning, I winced badly as I shifted my right foot and felt the very beginnings of a Charlie horse.

What was worse was that it seemed the palms of my hands were stinging again from the sharp wood chips that were littered upon the ground. I bit my lip in frustration, and unfortunately it was the kind of irritation that bubbled inside your chest and that made you itch to move and punch something. Both of those things however, were not in my range of movement, I couldn't do anything extreme unless I wanted to injure myself further.

The navigator didn't seem to want to leave me behind but she seemed to consider it, she was tilting her head to the side in thought and humming softly.

"Maybe you should stay here then...That seems to be the only option."

This seemed to bother Luffy and Zoro. "Eh? She can stand if she really tried, right?..." Zoro protested but he was sticking up for a useless cause. He was grinding his teeth together as he stood up himself. He was gripping his side unconsciously and his blood was beginning to leak through the fresh bandages. No doubt the injury demanded stitches but the oncoming fight did not give much time for that.

The fight was either coming to us, or we were charging towards it; and the given situation of the chief gallivanting forward towards Buggy gave us no choice, it was our duty to follow him.

Luffy and his first mate glanced down at me with blank expressions. "Right?"

Their confused faces, if possible, made me feel even worse.

"I don't think that's going to happen." I mumbled, my eyes flicked back and forth from Luffy, Nami, and Zoro.

The orange haired girl shifted on her feet, peering down at me with her hands on her hips, "So should we take you with us or leave you here...? I'm not sure which one is safer."

I let my hands swipe the dirt away from my pants while sighing tiredly, "What would be best? Because I don't want to trouble anyone."

Zoro grumbled at this and turned slightly on his heels to survey the long winding street full of debris. After a moment of thought a troubled look came upon his face and uncertainty flickered behind his eyes. "Well...You obviously can't fight and you can't run. I guess Nami's right. Stay behind so you can stay _out_ of the way."

"OOH!" Blurted Nami enthusiastically whilst snapping her fingers. A wicked glint began to sparkle in her eyes as she bit her lower lip and leaned towards me. In reaction my eyes grew wide and that familiar nervousness began to creep into my gut.

"You can get your energy back here, and then once you're ready, go to the docks and steal whatever you can from Buggy's ship while we're confronting him!"

….I squinted at the woman in front of me briefly before scoffing out right.

"You're kidding right?" I asked, with my voice about an octave higher than usual. I was smiling at first, white teeth flashing, but then I realized the devious redhead was serious.

"That won't work Nami, I'm about as sneaky as an Earthquake..."

It seemed the Navigator wouldn't take that as a plausible case for an argument, and with Luffy and Zoro watching us blankly Nami tilted her head back and shook her fist into the air.

"You can do it! I believe in you."

That caused a wry smile to spread across my face, and in an instant my strength collapsed immediately at her cheer, "W-well I guess I'll try."

Nami hooted into the sky, "GOOD!~ I know you can do it, so now..." The Navigator sent a determined glance towards Luffy and Zoro. "Let's go!"

The exclamation drifted into the empty street, and caused Luffy to grumble, "No No." He shook his hands in a dismissive manner.

"I'm the captain, so I get to say 'let's go!" He nodded to himself with a brilliant grin and a self-assertive nod.

Zoro, with his bandages spouting scarlet petals of blood again from either pushing himself or from Luffy's..Luffyness, he rolled his eyes, and I managed a short laugh as Nami stalked over to scold them both over the ground rules of what she was expecting of them.

It was definitely an interesting scene, and an odd feeling filled me as Luffy only grinned wider at Nami's warnings and wagging fingers.

I tilted my head a little, seeing them all together like that brought a strange mixture of enthusiasm and worry. The feelings welled up in me and I wasn't sure how to express them... My usual group of friends after all never had to go into battle and come out alive in one piece.  
Something else was nagging at me from the back of my mind, kind of like deja vu, but whatever it was, even though I just met these people I was attached to them at the hip. If they lost their lives to this I didn't know what I would do.

Could I even handle them losing?

They were handling this problem themselves and somehow I felt connected to that reckless and noble action... I shook my head, my brown hair flicking off my shoulders as I struggled to kneel.

Luffy raised both arms in the air and bellowed, "LETS GOOOOOOO!~ Heehee!" And with a grand flourish the straw hat wearing boy began to stride away down the street with Zoro and Nami following behind him dutifully.

I shot my hand in the air to wave at their backs, "See you guys at the docks! Be safe!" I called positively, not quite sure how to voice such an exclamation but trying my best to say it confidently anyway.

All three turned around to wave briefly to me, grand smiles, wicked grins, and confident smirks lit up their faces respectively before they all fell back into a sort of playful bickering contest between each other.

I breathed in deeply with my furrowed eyebrows digging into my forehead. With a strangled heave from shaking arms I was able to get onto my swaying legs again.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.

Sanji was lost in thought for what seemed the billionth time that week. He had been in such a trance lately that it seemed his mind was always in a constant haze of troubling thoughts and analytical reasoning's.

The cook was moving on autopilot, his concentration was as sharp as the knife he held, and he was frowning only slightly.

In those times where his mind wandered to that stormy night where that fragile girl tumbled out of the sky his body moved on its own. He acted like he always did, but the others could tell while he insulted them that he wasn't 100% into it-he was off somewhere else in his mind, thinking.

He diced onions, carrots, celery all perfectly to extract the purest of tastes from the vegetables (like always) but Sanji moved with more energy. His thoughts spurred him on as he systematically went through scenario after scenario in his head. He went about things in his kitchen with a stimulated and thoughtful passion. He peeled potatoes, apples, mindlessly, with pure muscle memory all while hanging onto one cigarette and letting it simply **burn** to its filter—All while thinking of that girl Claire.

Currently Sanji was staring at the South Blue Salmon that he was seasoning to perfection almost too intently for his normally nonchalant attitude. It was as if Sanji was trying to count all of the shells and starfish on the sea floor or get the answer to the universe from the dead animal.

For the sake of common sense that Sanji happened to hold dearly, and before Sanji jumped to any conclusions, he gathered information. He listened to his customers wishes and gossip without making it too noticeable, but the downside was that he didn't procure many helpful hints. Sure the Baratie had civilians on board, but they also had a range of customers from the Marines and pirates alike; all of whom could have information on what happened that night.

From what Sanji concluded the marine captain's and lieutenant's didn't know shit—nothing, zip, they were totally clueless, and that's what bothered him.

If even naval captain's of an entire ship were on a need to know basis to capture that girl, what kind of trouble was she really in for?

Why would they take the angel who couldn't even walk and who seemed as frail as a flower?

How did she fall into the ocean like that, and from such a height?

If he didn't see her fall straight from the sky himself he could assume she escaped the Marines ship and had tried to slip the collar and retreat into the ocean.

_'The poor angel~'_ he couldn't help but think kindly. Who could ever put a woman through that?

Sanji hummed and took his dwindling cigarette from his lips. Thinking of the Marines, Sanji realized that they usually went after big fish and left random criminals to be brought to justice by bounty hunters: for instance pirates, mass murders, anti-government loonies, and revolutionaries would be in their quota for capture- That girl hasn't probably hurt a soul let alone kill anybody (his passionate heart told him this) and in any case offenses like hers would be dealt with her home island's specific laws not an entire Navy ship...

With a furrowed brow Sanji knew in his gut that what has happened that night wasn't lawful or just at all, and who knows where that girl was now.

With precise hands Sanji wrapped up his fish with a plastic wrap before placing it in the fridge to chill and soak in the spices for 15 minutes. He extinguished his cigarette with a _'hiss'_ and washed his hands thoroughly before walking through the restaurant and to the side door that led to the outside deck.

It was the same door that he had brought the girl Claire in through, but only this time the weather was clear and the sun was shining brilliantly. It was a perfect seafaring afternoon.

Sanji couldn't shake the feeling though, that maybe he got it wrong...Maybe there was a missing variable to the girl that he didn't know about. Maybe he should forget about it.

Sanji sighed and leaned against the railing before looking up to that certain spot in the clear blue sky where the brunette fell.

He took up an entire 20 minutes looking out towards that spot, thinking, making one cigarette last for a long while between each lazy breath of smoke.

.-.-.-.-.-.

It took up a good deal of my time getting to the docks, a good amount of limping and wincing, but I got there. I did it. This was the day where I went an absurd amount distance without a wheelchair _mostly_ all by myself, it was an absolutely frightening, painful, but at the same time invigorating experience. I nodded to myself bashfully, yup, I may not be able to walk a thousand miles, but I can stroll on up to the docks with only a couple of stumbles. It was improvement, and that is all I wanted and needed, so I took it with immense positivity.

The sun was still quite high in the sky and I guessed that it was about 3 or 4 in the afternoon, and around this time I would be at home with my mom and dad.

...

I wilted a bit at the thought, and cautiously tread over the golden sand that shifted under my feet and made my stance quake. My arms shot out into the air to regain my balance, and I kept it with swaying legs and locked knee's. I blew out hot air through dry puckered lips to help keep myself calm and I staggered towards the dock where two little boats bobbed. One probably belonged to Luffy and Zoro and the other was a boat with Buggy flag flying above its sails, I wasn't sure how that belonged to anyone, but I left it without a second thought.

Further down along the beach sitting patiently on the lapping waves was the immense ship "Big Top" groaning loudly next to an old worn wooden pier.

When I was nearly right next to the ship I found myself gulping at the obvious distance between the vessel, the rope ladder on Big top, and the sea.

Great. A jump.

Well, maybe it was a hop for someone more _capable, _but it was unnerving to me. I clenched my fists into little balls and then relaxed them before stepping back briefly and then jerking myself into the ladder with arms at the ready.

THUD

"Ow!' I yelped, my nose and cheek slammed against the old soggy wood of the ship and for a moment I was cursing myself and swinging gently on the rope with a numb feeling seeping through my face.

This is NOT my day.

Grunting, I managed to keep my arms kept in a tight death grip around the rope.

I managed holding myself up with the power in my shoulders and biceps. Steadying myself was probably the most difficult task to handle, but with time I was able to maneuver my limbs around safely before I began to climb.

It was a bit of a struggle...

Well, to be accurate when I was near the top of the ladder I found my muscles were beginning to burn something awful, my head was pounding, and I was wheezing loudly as I heaved myself up further and further. Finally though, and with a strangled gasp I clawed my way over the railing of the ship.

This is it. The last hurtle, and then I probably have to get back down again...

"Ugggh." I moaned, and for the last ditch effort to get on the deck again I used my weight to rock myself over the edge. My stomach was pressing harshly against the railing, I couldn't breathe well, and I practically flipped over sprawling wise with squeaking shoes sliding on the weather worn wood, but I did it.

My voice was scratchy and a tad deep from my lack of oxygen, but I shot my fist into the air at my victory.** "I di-COUGH- I- I did it!"**

Panting desperately I leaned against the banister of the ship and tried not to whine incoherently. I swallowed my complaints and grimaced.

It's worth it.

It's worth it.

I can do this.

I took a few moments to gather my wits against my oncoming head ache, looking around slowly, all the crew members were gone and the wind sashayed around and played with the sails. The ship was eerily silent and I assumed it was the perfect atmosphere to steal things and get away with it.

The only problem was I didn't know what to steal and how to steal it, buuuut I knew where I could get started in my search.

The captain's quarters.

.-.-.-.-.-.-.

If there was something I didn't expect, I honestly didn't think that Buggy's room would be _normal._ When I got to the door I realized that, "Hey, something really WEIRD could be in here." but for Nami's sake I opened the fancy gold encrusted door of Buggy's quarters anyway, imagining dolls, clown gear, and maybe random instruments.

Instead I found bookshelves, a large wooden desk, chests, a lavish red rug across the floor, three square foggy windows on the right hand side, and a grandfather clock.

It was what I would image a normal pirate captain to have, he even had lanterns and gold pieces on his desk, and maps.

I nodded approvingly with my brows furrowed seriously, this was good, I have to admit. He had good atmosphere in here going for him and he was pulling it off.

_'Well done Buggy, well done.'_

I tilted my head at the thought of Luffy having a captain's Quarters, but not too long into imagining it I decided to leave that heavy thought for later—It held too many wacky possibilities.

Wandering about a little bit and simply scouting around the room, I decided to go to the chests first. I never bothered with saving the good stuff for last as a kid and I wasn't going to start now. They were all tarnished wood sets, both identical to their neighbor with rusted metal on the latches. They had no locks on them and although that made it easier on me, I wilted at the thought of not being given the chance to pick a traditional lock. They were as tall as my knees so I flopped down on my butt tiredly, and opened the first silently and held the top half of the chest open. The light from the cloudy windows illuminated the items inside and at first glance there were tons of unorganized papers. They seemed to be receipts, maps, statistics. Boring stuff. So I dug deeper and I found a thick stack of golden thick sheets of paper.

Wanted posters.

I whistled in appreciation, "...Woah."

This peaked my interest. The stack was old, the paper seemed delicate, and it caused a grin to form across my face. I took most of them out to take with me, and I dug around some more with both elbows buried in papers. Oddly there wasn't much that interested me, so I closed that chest and moved onto the next.

This chest opened with a long squeak and I winced at the sound. This chest wasn't as full as the one before, but it held more junk I could look at and examine.

I reached inside and picked a cloth of some sort, it was a deep blue velvet and as I held it up I realized it was a bag. It was too small to hold a body (I had to think about it) but about big enough to hold a good collection of clothes or...Stolen goods?

I nodded to myself, and picked up another bag that was of a different cloth, brown, old, and nothing was in it, the main difference was that it was more ragged and worn. I quirked my lips to the side as I looked between the two sacks. I ended up deciding to keep the Blue one for myself and then Nami could have the other for stolen goods. Yeah, it was fair.

Pondering silently I opened the black strings holding the blue sack closed and placed the wanted posters inside, I left it open on the ground and peaked inside the chest curiously again.

Papers, papers, and a few more interesting cloth bags varying in size. ..

"AWH SWEET!"

I exclaimed louder than I intended, and with a snap I closed my mouth while pulling out the item that I was excited about. A small soft golden bag with two cute yellow strings to tie it closed was what was in my hands. It was the perfect container for holding my money safely. Hurriedly I set it down on my lap and began to pry my sweaty shirt away from my chest to see the good old money wads currently puffing up my bra.

"I nearly forgot about these..." I muttered and patted down my pockets to gather the rest I pocketed from the Nazy ship. I slipped the foreign money into my yellow purse and then put my purse into my navy cloth sack.

I moved on to Buggy's desk and on the very top alone I snagged valuables like gold and jewels and necklaces. They were beside some sort of appraisal set with small sets of magnifying glasses and tools. I wasn't sure Nami needed that, so I put the valuables in Nami's bag carefully and left the fragile glass set to leave behind.

For my bag I put in a good stack of blank paper, a few pens, and some bottles of ink. I acquired a compass, what I THINK was a world map, and that's when I sat down in the captain's chair and tried the handles of all the drawers.

These were locked with actual key holes and I grinned.

Pick locking time.

From Buggy the Clown's desk I grabbed inside of the jewelry kit two thin metal pokers and some tweezers. I was winging it completely, but at with least luck on my side (and the fact that Buggy's desk seemed prehistorically old.) I believed I had a good chance.

There were 6 drawers in all. Three drawers on both sides of the desk and hesitantly I pressed the tweezers in to the keyhole and simply twisted them around, I wasn't even sure what I was doing. Like was this going to work-?

_Click._

I raised a brow.

"Oh-Oh wow..." I looked at my handwork and easily withdrew the tweezers from the lock. "That worked?" I murmured, and after a moment of just pure wonder I glanced at the tweezers in my hands and shrugged. I repeated the process to the other drawers and when I had them all unlocked I searched them one by one.

I procured even more valuable items, mostly likely all stolen, so I stole them back to be fair. For most of the collection of raw jewels I admired them each for a few moments before packing them into Nami's bag and when I had emptied most of the treasures out of the desk, I focused on filling my bag with goods I thought I might need.

I found a traditional gold engraved pocket watch in the first tray that I wanted to keep so I put it in my jean pocket; there was nothing else in the upper shelves of drawers so I closed the shallow containers gently and moved onto the deeper ones closest to the floor.

Alcohol was what I found in the first

Blinking, I realized I probably should have expected this-Buggy was a legitimate pirate who loved booze and here was his private stash.

Crystal glasses were stacked on top of each other and they lined the drawer along with other bottles holding various liquids. The biggest bottle held a dwindling amount of an auburn colored substance. I decided to leave the drawer open- it was too hefty for me to even kick closed and after finding he had been badly looted Buggy might need a drink to calm his nerves; it was the least I could do.

With my navy bag in my lap, and the bulging brown sack on the floor, I reached down slowly and grasped the handle of the last drawer tightly before heaving it open with a light jerk from my whole body.

My eyes widened at this surprise, but in retrospect I probably should have assumed this would be here too.

This drawer was mostly empty and was comprised of three things: The first item that caught my eye was a scintillating knife with a leather sheath over the blade, it was about as long as my arm, from wrist to elbow, and it had a handle of a plain black material.

The second item was a gun.

I for one had never held a gun in my entire life, let alone seen one up close. To say the least it disturbed me- who knows how many people Buggy killed with this one weapon? It was a traditional steel gun, with a narrow thin barrel, and it reminded me of a pistol that were used in old western movies.

Sure it was nothing fancy like the knife had been, but it definitely intimidated.

I sat back in Buggy's chair, contemplating what I should do, and then gazed hard upon the third item.

It was a full box of ammo.

I swallowed thickly before staring at my hands briefly, trying to figure out what I should do, and with a shaky hand I picked up the gun. Tenderly I rotated the heavy weight in my hands and I avoided the trigger with careful precision. With some random pokes and prods to the movable pieces I got the barrel full of bullets cocked to the side and then I proceeded to shake them all out.

Without a second thought I then placed all three items in my navy bag and left the spare bullets on Buggy's desk. I then carried my bag over to the book shelves, trying to will the presence of the weapons in my bag away, and I began to search through the tomes.

Some of the titles were apart of some topics that I didn't understand in the least, but as I scanned the book spines Buggy seemed to have what I was looking for.

Encyclopedia's, published journals from explorers—Real explorers! Some were not as clearly defined by their titles and authors; so I resorted to shifting through them and flipping through the pages till I found they were something that I wanted.

So far I didn't know anything about the world I was in, and the first step to surviving was understanding.

I grabbed the first few thick maroon volumes of the world Encyclopedia's, some journals of explorers, and tomes of exotic maps.

I slipped a few more random books into the bag and then closed my sac with a exact crisp sound of cloth.

With a huff I adjusted my bandana and dug the pocket watch out of my jeans to check the time, and just as I did I heard an awful lot of yelling. I had the urge to duck at the sudden sound, so I simply pressed myself instinctively against the bookshelf with my sore cheek against the spines.

I listened.

The yelling was desperate, purely masculine, and slightly distant...Whoever was doing all that hollering, they were scared enough for their screams to reach me.

Suddenly nervous I yanked my arms through the sack's ropes and began dragging them to the door and out onto the deck. The sunlight hit me and I squinted out towards the crying figures that were splashing with all their might in the ocean.

Three men it seemed were paddling like mad men out towards the horizon while yelling unintelligibly. I turned my head in confusion at who they were running from, half praying to myself that it wasn't Buggy and his men.

"CLAAAIIRE!~"

Blinking against the light my eyes caught sight of three figures at the docks.

Luffy, Zoro, and Nami.

I gasped and began to cheer from Buggy's ship, waving my arms wildly above my head.

"HEEY! YOU GUYS!" I laughed happily, "YOU'RE ALRIGHT!"

How did they even survive? This was fantastic!

"HEEHEE! COME ON CLAIRE, WE'RE LEAVING!" Yelled Luffy, and I happily obliged. I began to shuffle over towards the side of the ship with the goods from Buggy's quarters shifting around my feet. Luffy sprinted over towards the docks with three slits on the top of his hat, and a toothy grin upong his face. Nami took hold of Zoro's leaning form onto her shoulder and began helping him into his boat. Worry flashed through me briefly at the swordsman condition and hopefully in the time confronting Buggy it hadn't gotten worse...

Catching my attention back, my giggling captain reached the dock in front of me and stood grasping at the air with slightly bloody fingers.

I paused slightly, but managed to ignore it.

"Heeeey~ Throw those sacks down to me!" He called, seemingly in a wondrous mood after his fight with the clown pirate.

I blubbered for a moment incoherently, and then hoisted Nami's bag into my arms. "Be prepared for my awful throwing..."

He held his arms open wide and caught the two bags that I half chucked, half pushed over the side of the ship, and wordlessly he set them on the dock. He straightened and then relaxed into an odd sumo stance.

"Whatcha doin' Luffy?" I asked while tilting my head to the side. I planted my hands on the banister and then pushed myself up onto the rail to sit atop it. With that I slid around and dangled my legs over the side of the ship to face Luffy.

"I'll get ya down. Be prepared." Luffy giggled, and before I could ask how he swung his right arm out, like he was going to punch something, and his arm stretched. It stretched father than it should have been humanly possible, and it circled around me tightly before pulling me down yelping towards Luffy. His arms retracted back normally to his shoulder and he half hugged me whilst laughing loudly in my ear at my reaction. I clasped a death grip onto his shoulders as my body settled from slamming into him so hard.

It stole my breath away and automatically I tried grasping at Luffy's arms and pushing him at grappling at his face, he found it utterly amusing. "What just happened?! You're arm stretched! What? WHAT?!"

I pulled at his arm, trying to figure out what happened, it was inhuman. Unperturbed, the dark haired boy picked up both bags and with a bout of laughter began half walking, half dragging me towards the two boats.

"I ate a devil fruit like you! Now I'm a rubber man! Looks like we have to leave now though. I'll show you when we get on the boat and leave."

"Rubber...man...?" I mumbled in disbelief.

"Yup, and on top of that I'm gonna be king of the Pirates!"

.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

I sat on the boat beside Luffy with my legs drawn up to my chest and my arms wrapped around my knees. My expression was a mix between confusion and amazement, and across from my captain and I, Zoro was staring off into space. Nami was on her own raft with Buggy's mark on the sails, and she was beginning her search through her bag with gleaming eyes and high pitched sequels. It was worrying to hear her making inhuman noises at odd intervals but at least she was happy.

Luffy and Nami had meddled with their sails briefly before they caught wind and we began drifting out to sea. At the recent development of Luffy's...Power, I was staring at the straw hat boy intensely, and he was gazing at me with a cheerful expression.

"Okay, so you're a rubber man? What does that even mean?" I splayed my hand out in front of me and he snickered.

He didn't say anything and simply gripped his hand on the inside of his cheek, and pulled. He stretched out his cheek as if it was bubblegum and I gasped dramatically.

"Sheee? I'm ah wubber man!" He asked, and I think I felt my eyes begin to water in amazement.

"You're a cool captain, you know that?"

"HEEHEE! I KNOW!"

"HEEEEEEEEEEEEEEY! I'M NOT DONE WITH YOU YET!"

The four of us on our boat's shot upright at the sound of Chiefs voice in the distance. On the small beach, with a half demolished town behind him he held up his hands to cup around his lips. The old man was bending over himself, shouting strongly, as a crowd of people began to appear behind him.

"I'M SORRY! I OWE YOU FOUR! THANK YOOOOOU SO MUUCH!" His voice projected across the water and reverberated into a powerful echo.

My breath whooshed out my lungs and I smile and began to wave my arms in the air as Luffy and Nami shouted back their goodbyes and well wishes.

Tears streaked down the Chief's face in gratitude and he waved back.

I began grinning to myself as we sailed further out, the slight rocking of the boat against the waves caused a gentle relaxed feeling to flow through me. The air was fresh and crisp and a billowing breeze was caressing the sails softly. It felt amazing, and I relaxed against the side of the boat, smiling with the people I trusted.

I was safe, and I was sure that soon, I was going to find a way home.

With my navy blue bag at my side I closed my eyes and began to snicker with Luffy as we both pulled at his stretchy cheeks and sailed towards the shimmering horizon.

.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.

REVIEWS PLEASE!


	12. C'mon Claire

STEPS © ChidoriShiori  
One Piece © Eiichiro Oda

**STEPS**

**Disclaimer**: I do not own One Piece. I only own this story, my character, and this here plot.

ENJOY 13,832 WORDS!

**CHAPTER ELEVEN**

**C'mon Claire**

* * *

It took a grand total 5 hours for sea sickness to _royally_ kick my butt...

In summary it mauled me-punched me in the solar plexus, ran away, came back with buddies, and made me gag into the air while my masochistic mind yelled, _"BURRITO'S! BEANS! JELLO! BEANS AND YOGURT! BURRITO'S!"_

"_YOU'RE GOING TO THROW UP EVENTUAALLLY!"_

I dry heaved so hard from my thoughts I think I pulled something in my gut.

The constant rocking of the boat, the lapping of the sea, the salty scent—for some reason I couldn't handle the constant stimulation to my senses. It created a nervous and antsy reaction in my body that compelled me to sway back and forth with the waves and squeeze my eyes tight against the sun. I wanted peace and quiet, I wanted to snuggle up with a blanket in my living room next to my mom and dad, where only the ticking of my families old grandfather clock sounded. It was a surreal experience, being out at sea for so long. It made me homesick for one, for my parents and all those things I used to have.

Come to think of it, my mother would have loved this scenery—if it had to be one thing that consoled me, it was the view. The luscious vast blue of this ocean constantly melded with the clear icy sky. The wide open air and the gentle breezes were constant, all consuming, and intimidating. If she were here with me she wouldn't be afraid at all, she would welcome it…

A deep ache built itself higher and higher in my gut. Was she crying right now? Is she crying as hard as when Penny died? Was she looking for me? Have they figured out how I disappeared?

Are they okay?

My head spun, my stomach churned, queasiness would use me and settle in for a short time before taking off again like some terrible lover. It took 3 hours, after a long bout of dizziness, before Luffy, Zoro, and Nami finally dubbed me jokingly as a 'land lubber'. Really I don't know how they avoided telling me that within the first 30 minutes of the sea sickness.

"You'll get used to it." The Navigator drawled whilst pouring over her maps. Her sharp eyes flicked repeatedly towards the compass in her hand and back to the parchment.

"Don't puke on me girl." Warned the first mate lazily with his head propped up on his hand.

"Shishishi, did you eat something funny?" My Captain asked, leaning back from the front bow of the ship towards my hunched form.

And in response I finally threw up into the ocean.

Would I really grow used to it?  
It took me a while to consider, but if I was to face up to reality I suppose I would be on boats and ships for a majority of my time from now on.  
Voyages were meant to last for a long time, grand adventures were time consuming. It took two days and a night for my stomach to calm down and for my mind to relax before it sank in a somber realization. This was the **longest** I've ever (Consciously) sailed into the sea. Hell, this was the longest I've ever traveled without knowing of the destination. Land was nowhere in sight, only the different blues of the sky and ocean could be seen clashing at the very edge of the horizon.

I was really sailing for the long term, and to myself I felt as if I had overcome some sort of hazing acceptance test via puking. This was it; I had passed the point of no return, and to my surprise, with these friendly people around me, I think I wanted to see more.

Over the course of a few days after my revelation, my homesickness, AND my sea sickness I found I had grown quite comfortable with the crew. I answered their questions pretty simply, and it didn't take me long to get the gist of everyone's likes and dislikes. Luffy REALLY REALLY loved food and hated cry babies and bad guys. He got his beloved hat from a person he made a big promise to when he was just a kid and he vowed to become a great pirate someday because of that very person. Nami often sported a no-nonsense attitude, but from my understanding she was quite cheerful and very clever, she was about a year older than me, and wanted to make a map of the world. Zoro was a swordsman and his dream was to be the greatest in the world. He used a style called "San-torn-you" or something, he repeated it for me a few times, but I couldn't seem to get the hang of it (much to Luffy's amusement). When I was asked what my dreams were, I paused and shrugged slightly.

"You don't know what you want to do?" Luffy asked blankly, as if he had never heard of such a thing.

I rubbed my neck bashfully and shook my head, "Well, finding home would be nice!" I muttered softly.

Nami seemed to stutter in her thoughts, her face going blank suddenly with only wary glinting in her eyes, "You want to find your home? Well which Blue is it in. I have plentu of maps-"

I heard it immediately, the worry in her voice and I have a rough start and lifted my hands into the air with a tense edgy smile glossing over my solemn expression, "I-I meant something a bit more…Abstract. Home is were the heart is…And I need to find it."

I glanced down, feeling their stares make my skin prickle, "That's what I need help from you guys. I am looking for a certain place that I'm not even sure exists anymore…For me…"

I coughed, "I-I never had any aspirations like you guys have. Before I just…lived and didn't put much thought into it. To get home is pretty much all I have…"

Why did I have this nagging feeling of disappointment all of a sudden?  
This time it was the swordsman's turn to glance up at me with big eyes searching,  
"Do you have any special skills?"

I shook my head, "Nope."

"What about stuff you want to improve?" He shrugged noncommittally from his napping spot in the burning sun.  
Something I want to improve on? I glanced down at legs .

"I guess I just want to just be myself, help others, and to be a good person."

Nami raised one eyebrow; an odd expression flitted across her face like the shadow of a bird flying over head, "Aren't you already a good person?" She implored.

I pulled my knees closer to my chest and nudged my yellow bandana away from my eyes, I smiled grimly at the deck, "Mm…I have a long way to go before I ever become the person I really want to be-so how I am now still isn't enough..."

_**It will never be enough.**_

.-.-.-.-.-.-.

Nami's boat was by far my favorite place for habitation. Often times I could duck my head into the shade of the sails and stare off into the ocean to think and I could read the books I had stolen from Buggy peacefully.  
I was of course still shaky after the first two nights at sea, scenes from the titanic shifted through my head a couple of hundred times before it got old. When I brought up the subject of vicious sea creatures like sharks, the gang had to explain to me very _adamantly_ that those animals were actually the least of my worries. They vaguely didn't say anything else about what was exactly WORSE than sharks, but that didn't seem to matter anyway, it took no time to tell that I was in good capable (In Luffy's case: Rubber) hands. Luffy, Zoro, and Nami were the real deal. They were seafarer's who loved the ocean in a devout and loyal way and they handled every situation with lilted voices and confident expressions. When the sea did _this_, the crew did **that**, I was quite surprised by the straight forward direction and process they went through with fixing the sails and navigating. Usually I leaned back and watched them in a wayward fascination; to my crew the ocean was a safe haven, a place for adventure, and a place for possibilities. For Luffy, Zoro, Nami, and the sea was a place for dreams.

Oddly enough, from what I gathered in conversation I was actually closest to Zoro in experience with the sea, the gap was still pretty large of course, but he told me that he had spent most of his life training on his home island before getting lost and gaining his name as a bounty hunter. That was the only similarity I had between my three crew members and myself. For my life story I have spent my entire life on land, a small _lake_ was for vacation, and I traveled by car and plane—not even once by boat. Their culture was completely different from my own, and in that sense I felt as if I was lacking something sometimes. They knew their way around sails, ports, and anchors like experts, while I had no clue about even the basics.

I understood that I couldn't necessarily help that fact, but I was definitely left with the raw desire to know everything and anything about this new world I was in. Oftentimes while participating in conversation with my crew, I was struck by random facts that were very out of place and strange. I was beginning to think it had something to do with the verbiage or the slang they used- a lot of the time my crew mentioned things that flew right over my head.

Furthermore, I discovered that the language problem ventured both ways; to my annoyance my references from my world couldn't be comprehended. Nami, Zoro, and Luffy didn't understand one bit of any random idioms I muttered, no matter how clearly I tried to explain myself it was no use trying to get my meaning across. Regularly the source I was trying to pull from was hidden within layers of different origins, meanings, and culture complications; it set it stone that I was not in Kansas anymore. My location in this weird dimension wasn't even in North America or Western Europe, however the common language seemed to be…English. Their written language used the English alphabet, grammar, and the syntax was about the same at its core—all that was different was the people talked like I did, but used old slang words I didn't recognize. The reading material even that I stole from Buggy used verbiage that reminded me of the old Treasure Island story.

Yes, I was officially declaring this world I was stuck in as strange and unorthodox.

One theory I had hypothesized was that I was sent back in time, but then I got a good look at a map and realized that more than half of the world was covered in water. This was _definitely_ not my Earth—

How scary was that?

Being transported to another dimension, especially with the limits that I had on my body, with my naïve knowledge of everything!

I figured out that I was a very _**lucky**_ person to go through what I did, being me, while still coming out on the good end of the life spectrum. During one of those especially long nights where I couldn't sleep; too busy thinking of home, my bed, where I was. The wind howled in my ears and wouldn't stop. It whistled and looped endlessly, and reminded me of the sound of the wind back home…

Sometimes as a family either my dad or my mom would nudge me out of whatever gloom I held to myself, saying _"C'mon Claire.",_ and we would sit outside and listen to the wind and the chimes—we could all relax and talk, and watch the sun set and let the gusts pick up my mom's brown hair to whip the strands around her head—she would only last for so long until the constant adjusting of her hair made her mad enough to fetch a baseball cap and force it over her wild curls…We liked the wind because it would drop and then pick back up, make the clouds stop, and then wisp across the sky, and it was something Penny liked to do.

Here the wind was in a constant current, lapping strongly, like the water surrounding me.

That huge mass of saltwater…at night the bright blue clear hue was sapped away as the sun died, but it casted a sparkling mirror image off of white stars into the sky- I felt surrounded by these unseen strings of fate that I had become entangled in.  
Sometimes I felt an odd burning of irritation and hopelessness- I just wanted my parents to show up and take me away; to tell me, _"C'mon Claire"_ and bring me home to listen to the wind in a familiar place.

Other times I just couldn't beat away my wonder.

-.-.-.-.-.

**Day 4 at Sea.**

Nami had been a very busy bee since departing from the small island where my captain battled Buggy the Clown.

Unlike Zoro, Luffy, and I, who talked about nothing and napped in the sun. Nami spent her time wisely, she prepared food, mapped out where we were going, adjusted the sails, and made sure everyone was taken care of. To say I was impressed and grateful was an understatement—if I didn't know any better Nami could be the captain of this crew.  
"We need a plan." She announced calmly while brushing her thumb thoughtfully across her chin.

Luffy was sitting leisurely on the forepeak as usual when he craned around curiously to stare at our navigator. "What do you mean?" he quipped in his usually cheerful way, and he gave a hesitant glance toward Zoro and I. For Zoro he was sprawled across the ship in a way that allowed him to slip in an out of consciousness whenever a sleepy feeling struck him. Like my captain I was near the forepeak and it one of my favorite spots out of the entire ship. However, unlike him I tended to lean my back against the wooden paneling instead of perching right on it. Usually I'm able to keep my back to where we're headed and I can easily watch our lazy wake in the ocean. I was fond of this rest spot, I could analyze and chat with the crew easily, read some books in the right light, and the breeze behind the sails often fanned my face gently.

After getting past the initiation ceremony of course, being a pirate was quite relaxing. The lambent sun was out and beaming brightly, some fluffy white clouds were rolling across the sky-

"Are we going to the Grand Line like **this**?" Nami cautioned with one brown eye wide with skepticism. I had to force back a smile that threatened to spread across my face as I watched Luffy's growing bewilderment, his eyebrows has totally disappeared to his hair line by this point.

"Oh that's right!" Luffy chuckled from my right, "Uncle Cabbage gave us a lot of fruits and vegetables, but we don't have any meat on this ship!"

"Oooh, that is a problem. Where can we get meat?" I asked while genuinely curious. For a moment I let my mind wander to the easy and simple super market chains and whole food stores back in my town.

Did this place have those kinds of things? I leaned over the side of Nami's ship slightly to blink up at my captain. He patted the hat upon his head in a thoughtful manner before shrugging at me.

"We can probably go hunting if we find an island. Or fish if we can get some rods."

I sputtered a little before recovering with an awkward laugh, "Hunting? What would we hunt exactly?"

Zoro hummed slightly, "I could go for some boar right now."

"Yeah yeah! Boar!" Luffy clapped excitedly.

I narrowed my eyes, yet again their wording for things were weird. "Boar as in, like, a wild pig?"

Zoro smiled slightly and cracked one eye lid open, "Boar as in boar." He stated simply, and I squinted at the swordsman in scrutiny.

That was another thing I noticed during my chats with my newfound friends-I was under the assumption that the swordsman liked teasing me when I asked 'my brand' of questions. Not exactly in a mean way, but he definitely got a kick out of my reactions. Due to not knowing him for long I couldn't decide if he was kidding or being shamelessly honest with some of his answers—as is the case with sarcasm.

I was on the verge of presuming Zoro just has a very dry sense of humor contrary to the kind Luffy and Nami have. Luffy's humor is very simple and seemed to be focused on pranks and knock-knock joke puns. Nami so far seems to have a clever and cat like repertoire of what seemed to be inside jokes. Every time she mentions money or interest on information that she has to "Lend and Sell to me" she got an amused glint in her eye.

I shook my head.

"Boar as in...Bacon?" I ventured, splaying my hand out in the air as I raised my right eyebrow.  
Luffy practically slobbered at the word. "Hehe! Yeah! Bacon! And pork chops!"

Zoro cocked his head to the side, "And ham."

Nami was practically shaking from her irritation as she emphasized dramatically, "I am **not** **talking** about food supplies."

I glanced up into the air daintily as she focused her glare towards me. I was beginning to understand just how much how the orange-haired woman hated to not being taken seriously.

Zoro's voice piped up again, "Oi, we don't have any sake to drink either! How boring!" From his position near the middle of Luffy's ship, the green-haired swordsman held his hands behind his head, looking as if he was about to take a nap for the billionth time.  
"Ew. Sake's gross." I blanched, "Don't people traditionally drink that stuff warm?"

"LET'S NOT WORRY ABOUT THE PROBLEM OF FOOD AND DRINK FIRST!" Declared the Navigator vigorously, she made the motion of "You're out" with her hands and began scowling fiercely. She then huffed and shoved her arms by her sides as Zoro and I sent each other a patronizing look and Luffy began to laugh.

I quickly rolled my eyes and glanced away towards the sky.

"The Place we're going is the Grand Line! It's the most dangerous place in the world!" Nami said in exasperation.

My eyes widened, and I felt a little sharp tug against my throat. I pulled my knees up manually to my chest as I peaked around at the crew a bit frantically.  
"Why is it the most dangerous place? Why are we going there again? What?" I chirped nervously.  
Nami ignored my panic, but gave me a pointed look, "Pirates from all over the world go to the Grand Line for the treasure that's hidden within the number of islands. What we need is a better ship."

Luffy, Zoro, and I watched her blankly as she began to think and mutter to herself.

My eyes narrowed suspiciously, and I licked my lips before leaning over towards Luffy again.

"So…_What_?" I asked, quite possibly lost in my own confusion.

"What what?" Zoro mimicked, this time his voice held the strong traces of mirth.

I shook my head at him in exasperation, _really_?

"Something wrong?" He asked, widening his eyes too, yet again, mock me.

"Your face is silly that's all."

"Pfft."

I turned to face Luffy determinedly, who was as usual busy giggling at Zoro and I's brief exchange.

"Shishishi! What's up Claire?"

"So…When you asked me to join your crew, I never got the full gist of what your mission was…You do have some sort of mission right?"

"A mission?" He queried.

"Like- Like a goal that you have for the crew and stuff..."

"I'M GANNA BE KING OF THE-"

"Ah..Yes Yes. You've said that. King of the pirates, but what exactly does that mean?"

"It means I'm gonna be the best! We're going to the Grand Line so we can get all the treasure and see new places and most of all we're going to find the One Piece before anyone else does!" He earnestly smiled, and it was a smile so big it threatened to take up his entire face. I stared in surprise for a few moments before looking down at my hands.

…

I was so in over my head with these people. They were reaching for the top and I was being _me_. "That's a really awesome dream Luffy, but how do we get you there to be King of the-" "Hey! Are you listening?" Nami called, with a dramatic flick of her hand towards our faces. "We're short on crew members and these ships don't have proper equipment."

She focused intently on her map on before her, her chin rested on her fist.  
"No matter what it won't be safe for us if we travel like this." This seemed to catch Luffy's attention and he cocked his head to the side in worry, "So what should we do then?"  
Nami's eyes only narrowed, "We have to prepare and _plan_ for the Journey's ahead."

I hummed, "So you were right, we need a good base to start everything up."

Nami glanced up a nodded once, "There is a village to the North of us, and we can go there and look for a better ship!"

…

Luffy and I shared a blank look before my captain exploded in happiness, "AND WE CAN GET SOME MEAT!"

We dissolved into huge grins, Luffy 'Shishishi'ing' and I giggling cheerfully behind the back of my hands.

"And Sake…" Zoro added lazily.

Nami's shoulder's drooped, "Of course Zoro…"

.-.-.-.-.-.

Sometime later, just as Nami had stated, an island eventually came into view on the blue horizon. It was wide and green and it was oddly invigorating as we sailed closer to the beach, but as we drifted near my eyebrows tented, it was not as tropical as I had imagined…_ How weird_, the fauna of both this island and the last didn't add up to the stereotypes I had in my head. Instead of palm trees and coconuts there seemed to be thick brush and Oaks…It almost seemed like home but the exposed soil from the eroded grass exhibited a light sandy type of rock. In my part of the country the dirt was dark and soft, it gave you a slight spring in your step if you ran on the spongy grass.

Additionally it seemed the native lawn on this island was short and stocky, while in my town the grass always grew tall and thin.

_It's the little things I suppose that make all the difference…_

We docked slowly and Nami was the first to get up with her map, an eager and focused expression was set upon her features as she gathered her things. She stood up easily in the boat, confident and sure, and hopped onto the tough rocky land without a second glace. Breathing in deeply, I shifted on the boat nervously and I tried to synchronize myself to the rocking before trying to stand up myself, unlike Nami I was shaky and swayed easily.

I sighed, it was amazing how I could move like this at all, but it still gave way to new challenges. Learning how to walk again, without professional help seemed like it was going to be a problem for me. What if I learned unhealthy habits with my steps? I knew my basic muscle therapy my heart to keep my calf's sort of lean—The problem was strength and endurance. I dropped my shoulders and frowned, _'It's going to be reeally difficult.'_ The process of learning to walk again would take quite a bit of concentration. I shook my head as I steadied myself and glanced at Nami. I suppose I can try copying other people's strides and steps, that shouldn't lead me astray...

I used both my hands to hold myself up on Nami's ship. "Figures." I muttered, as I gazed down towards my quivering disobedient legs.

"Wow! There really is an island here!" Luffy exclaimed with his hand resting on his head, _totally_ unaware of my inner struggle mind you. "What did you expect?" Nami countered, she held the map out for Luffy to see. "We followed the map, so it won't be wrong!"

"_Oh_."

Luffy paused for a moment, "Is there a village here?" He asked while pointing towards the expanse of tree's ahead of us. I had actually been wondering about that myself and took a moment to blink up at our navigator's face. Nami nodded and beamed down at her map. "Yup, it's small, but it seems like a healthy little village."

_Interesting. _I would have never guessed by just looking at it from the outside. I peered down the pathway leading into the forest, holding steady by hugging the mast on Nami's boat. The straw hat boy chuckled and hopped onto the land enthusiastically, and immediately started glancing around in wonder.

"Guh, they just leap across like gazelles..." I grumbled, and finally slid my eyes towards Zoro.

…

"W-what are you smiling at?" I faltered, pressing my cheek against the mast in denial of the forthcoming need to walk and possibly jump.

Zoro simply he shook his head and lazily grabbed an oar and used it to pull my little dingy closer to Luffy's. I watched him curiously, and as he got our boats to knock against each other gently he held out his hand. "C'mon Claire head."

…

"Cl**air**e head?"

I balked as I bore my eyes at his hand. C'mon Claire. He said it. Pfft, t_he action is kind _I guess_, he's just helping me, I can't just ignore him._ He gave me an expectant glance, not saying anything to my question so begrudgingly I wobbled towards him before loosely clasping onto his calloused finger tips, "That's one I never heard of before. Pretty clever though. I bet you had to go out on a **limb **and **branch** **out** a little…Grassy-hair…Guy."

Pursing my lips, I stole a glance at his expression while I worked out my immediate problem of keeping the two boats from bobbing away from each other at my weight.

A tough silence sliced between us like a blade, probably something about his swordsman spirit clashing with my grand knowledge of cheesy puns thanks to Leo. Zoro's eyes narrowed by a tiny fraction; as if briefly seizing me up, but he doesn't say anything in rebuttal. I remained neutral; a complete poker face glazing over my eyes, as I determinedly stepped over slowly onto his boat. The rest was much simpler with his help, he pulled the craft closer to land as he stepped on, and then letting me grip his hand, I pulled myself up using my arms strength without any problem. A job well done if I do say so.

"Thank you Zoro." I gave him a slight nod of my head and a brief chipper smile before letting go of his hand. A faint jittering of pin pricks was settling deeply in my calves while I stood firmly upon solid ground. Grumbling a little, I made a point to step around delicately to get my blood pumping.

"Hmm," The Swordsman yawned. "It's been a long time since we've been on land."

"That's because you were sleeping half the time." Remarked Luffy, either a little miffed by that fact or just telling Zoro the truth, knowing Luffy it was probably the latter.

"By the way," Zoro pointed one had towards the cliffs surrounding the trail into the forest.

"I just noticed a moment ago, but what are those guys doing?"

I made a small noise of confusion and eagerly blinked up at the small figures crouching on the cliff side, "Uhm, why are they spying on us?"

Haltingly a figure seemed to stand up, a boy, from the looks up it, and the other three shadows dashed away with distant cries. His arms were crossed as he started shouting, "I AM THE GREAT PIRATE FLEET LEADER USOPP WHO IS IN CHARGE OF THE SECURITY OF THIS VILLAGE!"

"I AM ALSO KNOWN AS "CAPTAIN", CAPTAIN USOPP!"

….

I whispered to Nami, whose flabbergasted expression said it all; "Is this guy for real?"

The dude disappeared for a few moments, and came running down the path to stand in front of us (Not out of breathe mind you, and I felt a bit of jealously twitch in my stomach at that fact—One of these days I swear-). I tilted my head to the side as my crew and I considered him and as he scrutinized us. The main feature he beheld was without a doubt, his nose. It was really long-even reminded me of a hotdog—his his skin was tan, with curly black hair pinned under a dark cloth. Resisting the urge to pull down my own canary yellow bandana over my eyes, I admired the one this Usopp guy had on. It was a dark yellow with a square pattern decorating it, he seemed to use it to pull back his hair from his face.  
"It's best if you don't try and attack this village." He decreed calmly, "Because my 80 million men are not going to forgive you."

I eagerly stepped up from beside Luffy a small shy smile playing on my face, "A whole 80 million?"

Usopp smirked and sighed arrogantly as if he had to explain the answer to my question a million times, "Yes~ they're all so loyal to me…It would be a huge mistake if you guys tried anything funny."

"Ah, I see." Beaming, I began giggling with Luffy as Nami cut right to the chase.

"You're lying right?" Our navigator of course full of suspicion and as sharp as a tack, quirked one hip to the side as she raised one lone eyebrow high to her hairline.  
The bandana wearing Usopp wiggled in agony as he cried, "WAAH! I'VE BEEN CAUGHT!"  
Nami's eyelids drooped as she appraised him seemingly very unimpressed by his attempts. "See? You even said it yourself!"

"ARGH, DID I JUST SAY THAT? BAD PLANNING! BAG PLANNING!"

From behind me I could hear the soft smack of Zoro's palm connecting to his forehead...

.-.-.-.-.-.

"What?! Looking for companions and a ship?" the long nose boy asked in pure jittery excitement. He blinked back and forth at each of our faces to confirm what we told him. He looked extremely happy, giddy almost at the chance of pirates coming into his town, but he also seemed quite jumpy at our arrival. I blinked at him curiously while leaning against the wall across from Zoro and Nami and by Luffy's side in the small tavern Usopp led us to.

My captain nodded with a loud gulp, "Yup! We're going to the grand line!" And began devouring a…piece of some kind of animal meat, I had lost track of what Luffy had been ordering at this point. The restaurant itself was small and homey; the menu was made up really simple stuff: breads, meats, and rich vegetables, but by the end of our meal everyone was pretty much stuffed (Except for Luffy—his stomach seemed to harbor a black hole).

The food on my plate was all gone except for a piece of bread I was too full to eat, I picked at it with my fingers as Usopp continued. "So you're looking for a ship and some crewmen…" He trailed, "That sounds like a big adventure!"

I tossed him a tiny smile, "Yeah, even from what little I've seen it's been pretty interesting…"

Usopp absolutely beamed at this and chuckled under his breath, "You know there's only one place you can find the stuff that you want in this village. It's not a very big ship, but it's not small either."

Nami blinked curiously, tilting her head to the side, "Where?"

The long nose boy inhaled slightly and held up one finger in the air, "There is a mansion not far from the village that's owned by a wealthy family. The ship belongs to the mansions owner."

Usopp then paused, tilting his head to the side, and sighed almost in regret, "Well, we say that she's the owner, but she's a sickly girl that's been bedridden for quite some time. "

The green-haired swordsman made a noncommittal grunt in response as our Navigator's expression flitted into shock, "Eh? Then why is she the owner of the estate?"

"HEY AUNTIE! I WANT SOME MORE MEAT!" Interrupted Luffy with a loud upbeat holler, he gripped his plate in hand and began shaking it in the air.

Zoro raised a thin eyebrow and held up a cup, "YEAH! AND SOME SAKE!"

"Oh my- Guys.." I trailed bashfully; I sent a wide eyed glance at the villager's reactions as Nami let her hand encompassed her eyes tiredly. Usopp was clearly peeved, and the owner of the tavern gave Luffy a smoldering stank eye, one eyebrow shot down and the whites of her eyes grew a bit red.

I snapped my gaze away as if I hadn't witnessed anything peculiar.

Usopp waved his arms into the air and cried, "HEY! ARE YOU LISTENING TO ME?"

Fidgeting, I sent our new friend and the now disgruntled lady behind the counter an apologetic look. "Uh- I'm terribly sorry! Mr. Usopp please—continue."

Usopp automatically brightened at the courtesy as I made a slight nervous motion with my hands and Luffy chuckled, obvious bemused.

I fought the urge to roll my eyes, _waaay_ into my head as Usopp coughed self-importantly and renewed his tale with a dramatic ferver.

"About a year ago, the poor girl's parents became sick and died quite suddenly." Usopp's face becomes somber, but it also shifted into anticipation as he leaned forward.

"They left her with a huge inheritance, a mansion, and a dozen servants."

'_Darn_.' I thought with some growing confliction in my stomach. I felt guilty for this girl, a kind of secondhand sadness that she must feel about losing her parents, but I also felt that old selfishness in me that saw that kind of situation as full of new chances. My eyebrows tented thoughtfully as I shifted in my seat, and cupped my chin in my palm. Maybe in the past I would have liked the wealth, the glamour, but now…Now it sounds terrible. If I was sick and young with a ton of money, I would have my image and reputation on the line to spend it wisely, wouldn't have my parents to talk to, which means I would screw up on a ton of things, and I also wouldn't be able to do anything long term because of my illness.

_Here today, gone tomorrow._

How depressing…

"She's rich and lives in luxury," now Usopp was leaning back, his shoulders stretching across his chair with a frown, "But nobody's more unfortunate than her."

_Awh_…"So she's lonely now, has a big ton of responsibility, and is very sick to top it all off? That's a drag." I wince and knit my eyebrows together.

Nami hangs her head and sets her hand down on the table, "Forget it."

The copper-haired navigator closes her eyes tiredly, and opens them again with a calm assertiveness. "We're not going to find a ship here. Let's go find another town."

I blink, "Uh, should we stay here some more for restock?"

"Yup." confirmed Luffy, "We can spare some time, so let's go grab some supplies and let's go."

Smiling I nodded in agreement, "Sounds like a plan to me." I raised my eyebrows in question to Usopp, "Oh but uh does your town have a bookstore by chance, I would really like to get some more stuff to read."

Zoro rolled his eyes, "More books? You've been reading since we left the last island."

I straightened in my seat fumbling a bit for a good explanation. Could I just say I was extremely sheltered as a kid- "Well, I don't know a lot of stuff. Reading will help."

"I'm not sure about that. Can't cure air headed-ness"

"When have I EVER been an air head to you?" I leaned against the table with my forearm. Nami, Usopp, and Luffy watched as if we were a tennis match.

The swordsman scoffed, "You asked me _WHO_ Boom Jack was!"

Usopp sputtered for a moment and quickly slapped a hand over his mouth, "She doesn't know what a Boom Jack is?!"

My face heated up to a bright pink and I decided to ignore long nose, "Y-you! I didn't even ask _you_ _**what**_ a Boom Jack was! But when you did butt in you said it was 'Boom Vang!'" I shook my head, "How on Earth am I supposed to know what either of those things are?"

Zoro groaned, "They're the same THING."

"But I don't know that!"

"Exactly! So you're an air-head."

"I'm obviously just misinformed and _**you**_ aren't helpful!"

"You thought, Boom Jack, and Boom Vang were brothers!"

A loud guffaw rang from Usopp, and I sent him a withering embarrassed glare.

"Fine! I never bothered learning about boats, cuz I never bothered leaving my- island!"

"You should get out more."

"Obviously. So I need books!"

A silence simmered in-between the swordsman and I as Luffy chortled and Nami smirked.

…

Usopp awkwardly puckered his lips, and waved his hand in between the table, "Uh guys?..."

The eccentric boy coughed into his clenched hand and gave us a cheesy grin, "You guys are looking for companion's right?"

"Yes." Nodded Luffy.

"WELL IF YOU ACCEPT ME AS CAPTAIN I'LL JOIN YOU!"

The reaction was automatic.

"_**No thanks."**_

"Aww! DON'T YOU WANT TO THINK IT OVER?"

I hummed and took a coy sip of my water, "I don't think **Zoro** can handle that kind of mental strain.."

"OY!"

.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.

With a few more parting words Usopp the long nosed villager said his due and rushed off—claiming he had somewhere to be. It left my crew and I to finish the food the owner brought for Luffy's and Zoro and now we were relaxing with a steaming cup of tea.

The door slammed open dramatically, and at first glance I realized I had to look down to see the three small figures that had barged in.

A trio of kids waltzed in, scowling and obviously angry as they sucked in a deep breath and exclaimed, "USOPP'S PIRATES ARE HERE!"

"Huh?"

Nami stared at them for a moment before turning back to the table, "Who are they?"

I shrugged, "Kids from the village I suppose."

They marched in as if they owned the place and came to group in front of our table. "OY! WHERE'S THE CAPTAIN?" they demanded.

The short one with an odd cow lick on the top of his head appraised us dramatically, and I smiled fondly at their antics, "GAH! COULD THEY HAVE FINISHED WITH HIM ALREADY?"

They clenched their teeth and raised their fake wooden swords to the ceiling, "HEY YOU PIRATES!"

"How do you do?" I quipped calmly.

"YEAH HEY!"

"WHAT'D YOU DO WITH OUR CAPTAIN!"

"GIVE HIM BACK!"

Oh, well that's very honest of them.

I raised my hand slightly off the table, "Well kids, he actually—"

"AHH" Luffy rubbed his belly, "THAT WAS SOME GOOD MEAT!"

And they all exploded into gasps, "M-MEAT!?"

The red head reeled back with his arm across his face, as if shielding himself from the horror that was a _**full**_ _Monkey D. Luffy_, "THE CAPTAIN! HE COULDN'T HAVE."

I hid the grin plastered on my face with one well placed hand while Nami gave a short giggle. Even Zoro chuckled darkly, "If you're looking for your captain…" He trailed.

"We just ate him."

"NOOOOOO!" They screamed, huddled together, looking back and forth to each of our faces until finally roaring in fear at the slightly shocked Navigator. They paused to catch their breath, making the owner of the shop roll their eyes and sigh heavily, before they all hollered even loader than before, "AHHHHHH! OGRESS!"

Name slammed her fists onto the table, looking absolutely livid, "WHY ARE YOU LOOKING AT ME?!"

Luffy, Zoro, and I sputtered faintly before we all broke out into laughter as she fumed, "IT'S NOT FUNNY!"

.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.

3 pairs of bright young eyes stared up at my crew and I before they all nodded, quite in tune with each other, and the tallest Carrot asked excitedly, "He said, 'It's about that time' Huh?"

Zoro leaned back, his head resting on his tan arm as his eyes drooped in an almost sleepy manner, "Yeah, after he said that, he left the tavern."

The trio glanced at one another before grinning, "Oh, so he probably went to the mansion!"

Nami perked up notably, "The mansion? Where the sickly girl lives?"

"Yup!~"

Luffy confused by their answer asked, "Why does he go there?"

"To lie!"

The smiles on the children's faces were cheerful and radiant, the kind that lingered around one's eyes long after a funny joke or pun and made a person's cheeks ache. My eyes widened at this, "Usopp lies to her? Why would he do that?" Brows dipping down sullenly and eyes half hooded, I inhaled and exhaled slowly while deciding to fiddle distractedly at the salt and pepper shakers.  
"It's not very nice." Resigned my captain, and Zoro, Nami, and I agreed with solemn nods.

It was true; lying was like allowing yourself to be forced into the _shallow_ end of the social pool and letting yourself live with the fact that you're likely to never be trusted fully ever again. If you stick up for someone who lies, be extension you're either a fool or in on the scheme as well.  
It was usually grasping at straws, exaggerating to such an extreme to impress people that you're eventually seen as an obnoxious attention seeker by the end of any beguiling ordeal. ..Well unless you weren't apart of Alicia's team, **then** any lies told were held with twice as much face value and automatic trust, but on the other side of the coin the lie was blurred more and more along the trail of whispers and gasps of the students in my school. Anyone can get caught up in a lie, some people do it to get ahead, and some lie to loved ones so they don't have to live with guilt.

I looked at my crew swiftly and back down to the table again; thought of my parents faces briefly and rolled my shoulders—you also lie to lessen the load of burdens on others—can't forget that one.

Pushing my cup of tea aside I winced slightly as it's bitter taste left a ring of remembrance to my tongue. Of course whenever I do get home my disappearance in my new car won't exactly make for trusting relations with my parents. I had _just_ been able to get my mother and father relaxed and natural in a vehicle with me again when I was driving, when I was in control, when I was being perfectly safe.

And then I had to go and get in another wreck. Claire Steele style.

"It's not bad!~" Chirped the dark haired boy with both arms at his sides. Onion, I believe also hopped forward eagerly, "Yeah! In fact it's very nice!"

…

They went on to explain to us adamantly, that Usopp went to tell lies to cheer up the girl named, Kaya. He told all sorts of stories and tall tales to brighten her day and to make her laugh. The downside was that he usually included himself into the stories, and painted himself as a mighty and brave warrior that sailed the high seas. It was a ritual of sorts; Long nose would run off about the same time every day and meet Kaya at her window. I shrugged at this.

The story swept away my resentment under the rug and left me at a happy compromise with this Usopp guy, it was always easy to dismiss faults in a selfless person.

"Well, I guess in that context, Usopp's _lies_ are okay. He's been making Miss Kaya feel better since she got ill? That's very nice of him." I smiled softly as my captain bobbed his head in a sage like manner.

"Yeah! He's not a bad guy!"

Nami, having been quiet during their explanation for their, 'Captain Usopp', finally spoke up. "So he goes to her to lift her spirits and he's been doing that for the past year?" Her eyes floated up and reached mine, her face shifted into light humor as I shrugged.

"Yup, sounds like he's good at telling stories too."

"Hehe! I like the captain's nosiness!"

"Yes! Yes, I like the captain's cowardice!"

Onion fist pumped into the air, "I like his lies!"

I bit my lower lip, to keep myself quiet for any comments I might have reserved for what I think of liars and smiled knowingly instead, I'm pretty sure the kids exaggerated his stories as, 'lies' early on and obviously thought of him as a great person anyway.

Zoro's eyebrow twitched notably, "What kind of strong points are those?"

Luffy's growing excitement was nearly malleable beside me, and my smile wavered slightly as I peaked at him from under my bandana, "So this means the lady is feeling better now right?"

"Yup!" Urged Carrot cheerfully, "It's all thanks to the captain!"

My captain of course bounced up with a surge of enthusiasm.

"Then let's ask her for a ship!"

Nami appeared to choke on air, "Didn't we JUST agree on not doing that?"

"We'll he's the captain." Admitted Zoro with a roll of his eyes and I nodded at Nami, "That would make him the judge AND the jury, I think."

.-.-.-.-.-.-.

Not even allowing the stragglers to dawdle, which seemed to be Zoro and I, even for a few measly minutes in the restaurant, Luffy practically hopped, skipped, and marched us to Kaya's mansion.

Endearing as it was for his enthusiasm, and as much as I wanted to march beside him, I made a point to walk slowly beside Nami quietly. She was set on glancing at him sassily if he tried anything funny and she didn't say anything else towards her desire to leave Kaya alone. And it was probably best for me to take it slow, seeing how the ache in my legs made walking a burning exercise and every once in a while it felt as if my legs would drop out from underneath me. I suppressed a dry chuckle, and took my time in admiring the scenery, seeing how it was so green and lively, and I admittedly began studying my crew's style of gaits. For a while now I found myself hugging my stomach out of habit, since I had nothing to do with my arms, and usually walked tucked in and close to myself. Luffy and Zoro on the other hand admittedly had a bow legged all out strut of confidence, and Nami rolled into her feet into the ground smoothly with swaying arms by her sides without any hesitation. (I tried not to stare weirdly, but sadly-)

"Why are you trying to match your steps with mine?" Nami quipped curiously. Flushing, I automatically snapped my head up from where I was glaring at our strides in an intense comparison session to the ground. I stumbled over my explanation in a frantic and apologetic tone. I remembered the burn of Alicia telling me to speak up or to explain myself precisely in this situation and winced slightly.

Frowning as I heard Nami giggle I stopped and glanced up at her face guiltily—

Only I just happened to register the highly amused smile on her face. Not disappointment or slightly insulted confusion. I froze and tried to appear cheerful as well in my haste.

"So?" She prodded.

"Oh, uh, well I'm trying to walk like you…Cuz I'm pretty clumsy and awkward..." I admitted, "You never seem to trip. I do...A lot."

There was a half a beat of silence before Nami laughed happily, white teeth flashing as she tilted her head back. Oddly enough I smiled surely along with her as she calmed and gave a comforting wink. "The secret is to not having shaky ankles…" She peered down at our feet for emphasis as she began to step purposefully, heel to toe with knees bent, and ankles instep with a precise beat. I tried to copy her eagerly and laughed slightly at my own expense. She then glanced thoughtfully at my shoulders and my arms hugging my stomach briefly before reaching around and pushing my shoulders back and out and stationing my hands down and in front. "Chest to the sky also since that can never hurt. Gives you confidence!~"

I blinked and laughed quietly, "Thanks Nami!" I smiled bashfully.

She shook her head, staring at my face for a moment before smirking herself. "No problem, and it looks like we've arrived."

"Oh?" I turned expectantly as we rounded a curved dirt path, Zoro even gave a low whistle.

The entrance to Miss Kaya's Mansion was wide and clear, everything was straight lined with elegant walls of brick and the entry way was a locked vine covered gate.

The house had many windows, all mostly blocking the inside view with seemingly thick dark curtains. The glass glinted in the sunlight, and we slowly came to a halt in the path.

I hummed, "Well, what now?" Questioning looks flitted from me, Nami, and Zoro before we all settled our gazes on Luffy.

"Good afternoon." Our Captain greeted calmly (To the gates) as the three Usopp pirates stood at attention beside him.

"Can you give us a ship?"

…

I cocked my head to the side at his odd request._ He is so…Luffy._

Luffy sighed, and for half a beat seemed to be deciding on what to do before he threw his stretching arms toward the top of the fence and began to climb.

"Oh well," he resigned in a nonplussed manner, "Let's just go in."

I held my hands out with wide hazel eyes bulging, "What do you _mean_ let's just go in? This is trespassing."

Nami practically deflated as she looked off into the distance sullenly, "We're pirates."

I twitched, "Oh. _Right_. Of Course."

"What was the use of the greeting then?" Questioned the young and thoroughly confused; Onion, Carrot, and Pepper.

"That gate is taller than me by HALF, and then a little more." I argued, "There is no way. I can get over it."

Nami slapped her head into her hand with a growl, "Can't we stop him?"

Zoro, seemingly on a whining overload shrugged at us both expectantly, "No. So we better follow him."

I paused and gave the bored green haired swordsman a dubious glare, "I'll guess I'll wait here for you guys then. I'll keep watch or something."

Zoro nodded, "Okay, suit yourself."

…

Puckering my lips briefly and then drawing them in tight, I sighed tiredly and leaned against the brick wall with a stubborn shake of my head. Zoro and Nami followed Luffy diligently, their bodies practically oozing with athletic ability as the hopped over.

And then there was the burning wretched salt in my wound, the three children musketeers paused on top of the fence before flashing me smug grins as they climbed over the gate as if it were nothing.

"They're all monkeys." I chuffed sarcastically, my eyes rolling dramatically.

Silence trailed thickly in their wake and eventually I just settled on frowning expressively at the dirt before me. Birds chirped, the wind brushed through the long grass, and with a sudden sigh I collapsed butt first into the ground in a huffy undignified manner.

Waiting was just one of those things people can't avoid, but even with at least 40 years more to go in your life time, you still haven't figured out anything fun to do to pass the time.  
Although, it wasn't before long the sound of a couple of high strung voices began rising in volume from the opposite side of the fence.

In my worry I listened carefully, as shouts and hollers—all filled with intense emotion, echoed into my side of the mansion grounds. I hugged myself tightly, hoping my captain and the gangs weren't pulled into something stupid or dangerous. With my eyebrows tenting the arguing reached a crescendo.

"DON'T YOU DARE INSULT MY FATHER!"

I stilled a half beat with a shiver running up my spine, eyes wide and doe like, I recognized the voice. 'Usopp' I mouthed, and frowned uneasily.  
Who was he arguing with? Kaya?

But a shrill voice, like glass in the air, kind of fragile yet authoritative cried out, "STOP IT! DON'T HURT HIM USOPP."

There was another awkward pause, one tense and overbearing, "THIS IS NOT A PLACE FOR A BARBARIAN LIKE YOU!" Shouted another male voice, one I didn't recognize.

"REMEMBER THIS! DON'T YOU DARE COME TO THIS HOUSE AGAIN."

Usopp's voice rang out again after a beat of murmurs, "DON'T WORRY. I WON'T BOTHER YOU ANY MORE!"

Uh oh.

_I guess things did not go smoothly._

_**Sooo, we aren't getting the Black Pearl?**_

Standing up shakily at the approach of footsteps I swept off any dirt or grass on the back of my pants and came slowly around to the face the gate.

The long nose boy, with his head down and a familiar upset glassiness to his eyes pushed against the gate roughly, making it swing out with a creak and nearly clipped me in the arm.

So he was angry—I glanced at the tall mansion before looking back to Usopp.

Blinking slightly with indecision, I tilted my head curiously before calling out.

"U-Usopp!"

The bandana wearing boy gave a harsh start as he looked up at me with startled and embarrassed eyes. He brought a clenched fist up to his face as he turned to glare down at the ground, "Oh, it's you…I was wondering why you weren't with your friends."

His tone was slightly bitter, and somewhat slow and quiet- as if he was distracted by something important.

It was all there in his body language, practically oozing out of his every pore…

Sadness.

I dipped my chin down, appraising him silently and distantly. All the while taking in his quick blinking eyes and hunched shoulders.

"H-hey…Yeah, I'm no acrobat. I can't climb over fences illegally, like it's nothing…" I frowned at his solemn expression before coughing awkwardly.

_**Admit to yourself that terrible at cheering others up!**_

Scratching my cheek I cautioned softly,"Mr. Usopp. I know that this might be a dumb question…"

I held a hand out slightly perplexed at the feeling of second hand guilt over the harshness Usopp received from the male voice on the other side of the gate. I tenderly approached him as I peaked over his shoulder, catching sight of a man in a black suit and glasses glaring at Usopp's back."Um, well—"

_**This is kind of painful; I mean do you not feel that itchy, burning, tingling sensation?**_

_**It's common sense telling you this is stupid.**_

I shut my eyes tightly before opening them again, renewed in my determination.

"A-Are you okay Usopp?" I asked, and before he could respond I held up my hand nervously in a halting manner. He closed his mouth, stopping himself from saying anything, and I nodded to him gratefully.

_**The last step to denial is acceptance. Quit while you're ahead and happy, Steele.**_

"Well, what I _mean_ is, _like I said it was a stupid question_, but I already know the answer, and it doesn't exactly change anything if you answer it..."

"So, uh, allow me walk with you for a bit, for company. We don't have to talk or anything..Uh, if you don't want to, but I'm sorry for whatever happened back there. Everyone sounded really angry."

His nod was almost imperceptible, and he tucked his clenched fists into his pockets gravely before letting me successfully fall into step beside him.

I bobbed my head back in thanks-letting a comforting smile spread across my face, cheering to myself at my small helpful victory.

…If there was anything I learned from Leo and cheering people up—it was that you never let a person whose upset interrupt your apology with false feelings—

"Also..If you want, you can tell me a story." I grinned as I caught his eye, "Apparently they're really great."

"Haha!" The icy tension in his face thawed slightly.

"You're pirate crew told me actually. They're really enthusiastic about you." Usopp's expression broke out into a glimpse of happiness, "They're the best! Aha! My stories, I mean."

"Awesome!"

"I have a great one I tell all the time about an enormous gold fish I once met in the South Blue! Oh and uh," He scratched the back of his head with a crooked grin.

"Sorry, but I forgot your name."

I held up my hands, "its okay and my name's Claire Steele! Nice to meet you again I guess."

I chuckled quietly as Usopp began flooding me with every little detail of how he fought and gallantly overpowered a giant goldfish in the so called, South Blue—He caught it and eventually took it to a staving village that was apparently still eating it to this day.

-.-.-.-.-.

Eventually, and through a heck of a lot of convincing from his part to me, Usopp led me to a place he had said in his own words, "Could sweep anyone's troubles or worries away."

"Okay, I can _**totally**_ believe your gold fish story, I mean, it sounds, like, _**real**_ but I don't believe in the existence of a place that can tangibly take away someone sole negative emotions."

He swatted his hands in the air, "Blasphemy! I can show you this place!"

"But- _Captain_ Usopp, what if this magical place took away ALL your emotions. Then you would be like, a robot! Dun dun duuuun!"

I waggled my fingers sarcastically, making the scary, "Oohhohoooo.' sound.

He chuckled excitedly, "Really, really! I mean it!" He insisted.

I teased him, "Suuuree you can."

But he wasn't lying or boasting actually—It was easy to tell we were by the coast again when we were in the thick neck of the woods, with the sound of the crashing waves on the shore. But I didn't acknowledge the place we arrived to (after much tiring walking) until we finally arrived at a steep cliff side. This is where he confessed he liked to relax, and I had to admit.

It was beautiful.

In all intents and purposes, I understood where he was coming from in needing a place to cool down and settle, and this seemed to be like a great place. An all consuming breeze hit me immediately as we emerged from the brush and tree limbs of the forest. It was cool and bright from the waves and sun. The tide and the moving leaves gave a grand percussion that surrounded you.

The view presented a picturesque scene of the shimmering ocean being hit by the suns natural light. It illuminated the creamy ocean floor, and let a person see the gradual calm of the sea the further one gazed out…

"Woah." I admitted, as Usopp nodded somberly and actually didn't bother with any bragging. It seemed this place was kind of special to him, and he simply sat down and took a deep breath of the sea air before releasing it in a big sigh.

Feeling a little out of place, and acknowledging that I could perhaps be intruding on his alone time to sort out his feelings, I nodded to myself and tip toed towards the one lone tree by the cliff slowly before sitting against its bark.

I stared out into the ocean with him for a few moments, before he spoke up.

"Like I said, I come here when I'm troubled… I can look out at sea and imagine myself there sailing out. Being a pirate captain and-"He paused, and curled around his knees. "Sorry, this must sound kind of weird."

Surprised flushed through me at my sudden urge to shout a loud and expressive, "No it's not!" in reaction.

Flushing I stammered to find those words of understanding hidden within me.

"N-No." I reasoned with him while shaking my head slightly, "It's _not_ weird."

_**Well **__**he**__** is a little bit.**_

Sucking in my lips and biting them awkwardly, my eyebrows tented in apprehension.

"You know…Back at _my_ home. I had a place like this, it was a bit different of course, no view of the ocean or anything but—"

Glancing down and scratching my neck I lifted my bandana away from my forehead, "It was- well now _this_ will be weird to you…The place I would calm down was my little sister's room."

"It really," I paused and "uhh'ed" intelligently, "It wasn't like this place, that always took _away_ worries or sadness. Sometimes it actually made me upset, but a majority of the time, it blocked out so many **petty** _problems_. It was a shield, I guess."

I shrugged, "Everyone needs that kind of place Usopp, someplace that can contain your emotions and take away everything else. THIS place is like 5 star relaxation station here, and those problems with Kaya, and that Clause-and-doors guy…they will work themselves out. Just have to give it time is all."

"HEY!"

Usopp and I jolted, at our suddenly bloated cheek expressions, for the both of us girlish screams were ready to burst from our throats as my captain, hanging by his feet on a branch, swung inches away from our faces with a beaming smile. I squealed and tried to practically scoot into the tree as Luffy laughed at my expense, "LUFFY?!"

"I FINALLY FOUND YOU GUYS!" He giggled happily and easily managed to clap with his upside down self, and like a monkey in a tree he swung back and forth slowly before leaping off and landing on his hands in front of the long nosed teen. "D-DON'T SCARE ME LIKE THAT!" Usopp exclaimed.

"Hey! You're dad is Yasopp right?" Quizzed Luffy nonchalantly, he stood up and smirked in his giddy excitement. He began glancing about the area busily as Usopp, with a caught off guard expression perhaps stuck to his face, stuttered in confusion, "H-How did you know that?!"

My captain explained simply, "I met him when I was young."

_In Luffy's youth?_ He knew this guys dad? Woah.

"What?!" Usopp gasped, "You met my father?"

"Yup! You look just like him, that's why you looked familiar. Your story helped me remember." Luffy patted his hat securely on his head before he dumped himself down beside me with his permanent smile across his features.

I pulled up my knees and listened as if it was story time yet again

_**Only now it gives off the soap opera feel…  
**_

"Where is he now?" Usopp asked, suddenly all excited and jittery, his grin was wide and exuberant by this point, but I was almost tempted to demand how he didn't know where his own father was.

_**Separated at Usopp's birth sub-plot perhaps?**_

I furrowed my brows slightly in confusion as Luffy shrugged, "I don't know." He tilted his head as if to say more. "Oh, I'm sure he's still with Cap'n 'Red Haired Shanks' though!"

My jaw dropped sarcastically, this explains nothing to me...

"So, is your dad like a pirate then?" I asked politely and Usopp turned and nodded proudly as he and my captain beamed.

With a grand bright smiled Luffy chuckled, "Yasopp was my favorite crewman on my favorite pirate ship!" Luffy admitted cheerfully.

"Huh? Really?" Usopp looked out into the horizon wistfully, "Wow, so he's with Captain Shanks…'Red haired' Shanks huh?

I held up a finger demurely, "Uh, that reminds me of a question I have, who is Captain Shanks…"

Usopp, too caught up with Luffy to probably process my question (I think…Hopefully.), exploded with great enthusiasm, "HE'S WITH SHANKS!?"

Luffy jolted as if thoroughly shocked as well and cried into Usopps face, "YOU'VE HEARD OF SHANKS?!"

A stray dramatic tear was threatening to leak from my right eye, "I still don't know who this dude is…Someone tell me already. Is he cute?"

"Of course I've heard of Shanks!" Usopp declared with a dry gasp, "He's a great pirate!"

I nodded sagely, "Oh. Okay. Pirate…Like Luffy said…earlier."

_Two dudes caught up in a shouting match- only instead of favorite baseball teams their talking about their favorite pirate crews…_

_**My little maiden tear fell as I smiled sadly, the little drop shined and scintillated upon its descent. It shatters into a thousand million glinting pieces when it hit the-**_

"WAIT! MY FATHER IS WITH A FAMOUS PIRATE CREW?!" Thoroughly flabbergasted it seemed, Usopp jumped up excitedly with clenched fists and shaky knees.

I looked from side to side awkwardly as Luffy set one cupped hand up to his chin, "Yeah, speaking of great, if I recall your dad was a great shot. He never missed."

I whistled, although feeling a little ignored, "So your dad is like a sniper?" I looked to Luffy for my answer and he shrugged.

Usopp thrust his hands into the air and brought them back down again with a happy holler of joy. "Yes sir! He sailed off into the boundless sea. My father's out there risking life and limb, and I'm proud of him."

…"My dad's a businessman.."I mumbled wryly, remember his old suit and tie get up, and smiling fondly anyway.

I glanced up at the long nose boy from under my bandana, he seemed to be at the apex of an intense revelation with himself, and finally he straightened to a full of stance of confidence as he gazed determinedly at the horizon.

"That Butler said some obnoxious things about him! He'll ruin my father's good name!"

I raised a hand in question, "You mean that…uhm, Clock-ha-door guy or something?"

"YEAH!" agreed Luffy and I smirked immediately at the fact that he knew who I was talking about, "I don't like that guy either!"

Luffy heaved a deep breath and stared at Usopp questioningly, "So…" He trailed in a conversational tone, "You're never going back to Kaya's?"

Usopp sighed undecidedly, "I don't know…If that butler begs me to come back THEN maybe I'll go see her."

I held up a finger, yet again, and this time coughed into the air loudly to get their attention, "You know Usopp, if you want to follow the Soap opera specifics for friendship and dedication. You should go see her anyway. It will probably lift her spirits to see someone fight to see her. Mr. Butler doesn't always know best in this case."

Usopp's eyes widened in surprise, eyebrows knitting together as my suggestion sank it.

Luffy tapped my hand, and I turned to him appraisingly. He didn't say anything at first, just motioned to come near the edge, he was leaning over it himself, peering down as he spoke, "You mean THAT butler?"

Usopp scoffed obliviously and nodded, "Yeah THAT butler…"

"Wait…" I sputtered in confusion, I scooted my butt over, careful to not cause any grass stains on my jeans and saw two conversing figures down on the rocky shore below.

_**Soap opera ultra secret romance?**_

_**Scandelous.**_

I chuckled.

"Hey! What's that butler doing HERE?!" Usopp's tone held buckets of distaste and maybe even a little bit of hate.

Eyes narrowed I crept forward slightly as I squinted, still wary of the edge as Luffy, Usopp, and I spied silently on the duo. I nodded to myself blankly.

_**Soap opera ultra secret romance.**_

_**Butler edition.**_

"Django," The butler's voice was dignified and precise as he motioned toward his companion, "I instructed you to keep a low profile. What were you doing sleeping in the middle of the village?"

"Maybe he can't help it," I whispered in the unknown companion's defense, "Maybe the dude has narcolepsy."

I blinked, and jerked my head back a little as I really stared at the Django person, "Holy crap!" I exclaimed, and Usopp and Luffy stared slack jawed in surprise.

"What?"

"That guy, like, totally reminds me of Michael Jackson, holy crap." I shook my head to remind myself to not talk with interjecting 'likes' and ' totally's-no matter how scandalous the news.

He has his whole…stance down to a science. Hand to stomach. Other hand to his head; and one leg cocked as if he's ready to moonwalk.

Awesome.

Usopp blinked nervously, and leaned down, "W-who's Michael Ja-"

The King of Pop spoke, making my thoughts snap to attention and upsettingly I was disappointed to hear that his voice wasn't like MJ's at all, it wasn't soft or quiet but instead all out of pitch and heavy. "Don't be silly. I'm not standing out. It's not strange at all."

"That guys weird." Muttered Luffy, his head stooped by his hands as we all leaned down.

Usopp's face was twisted in confusion, "I've never seen him before."

I paused and stared at long nose, "What do you mean—So you've never seen him in the village? Why would he be talking to Kaya's butler then…"

The butler adjusted his glasses with the palm of his hand, "Have you prepared everything necessary to carry out the plan."

_**Plan? Sounds Sketchy.**_

"This is totally 'Days of our lives' right here, guys." I whispered, although I could tell by Usopp's suddenly perturbed face that they didn't get the reference…Too bad.

The guy with hearts sunglasses nodded, "Of course I have."

"Operation 'murder miss Kaya' is ready to go any time."

My eyes snapped to wide till they were size of dinner plates.

_**MURDER KAYA?!**_

_**I KNEW IT! Soap opera! Soap opera!**_

"Django Django. Don't say 'Murder' it sounds so…Sinister."

"That's because it _**is**_ sinister."I muttered darkly, my face scrunching to a disbelieving scowl.

Django smirked in a conniving, sarcastic, fashion, "Oh yeah, 'accident' it's going to be an 'accident' right? Captain Kuro."  
My fists clenched, "If there was any way to get me mad. Someone would have to be straight up stupid enough to say those exact words. This is so- _**mhndnhcnmm!"**_ Luffy, his expression blank and curious covered my mouth with one hand as he distractedly made the slow, "shoosh" sign his other.

"Quiet fool!" Kuro scolded, "I discarded that name three years ago. Don't ever call me that. You're the captain now."

…

"Hey." Called Luffy quietly, "What are they talking about?"

Usopp huffed, "That's what I'd like to know."

I jerked my head out a little, my neck veining with the suspense hanging low and heavy in the air. "Guys, they're obviously going to murder Kaya for some reason. Either that or they're making a very crude joke."

Usopp's eyes narrowed, "Wait a minute! I've heard of captain Kuro before!..." suddenly ashen long nose breathed in a gasp.

"He was famous for his carefully planned pillaging raids. But rumor was that three years ago he got caught by the navy and executed."

…Eye's suddenly searching the horizon I took a deep breath and held it in. I covered my mouth with the back of my hand before sighing and admitting, "Can we all just agree that this sounds really bad?"

"Yup." Nodded my captain.

"Hey shh, they're talking again."

"To tell you the truth..I wasn't too sure about this plan." Django drawled.

"Oh no?"

"It was crazy. All of a sudden you quit pirating. You taught us all to work without you..."

I bit my lip before nodding to myself, "They're doing it…The big secret plan reveal."

Long nose shook his head in exasperation, "What does that even mean—"

Luffy's eyes widened, and gave Usopp a soulful star with his usual high strung super intense expression, "No she's right. Bad guys always talk a lot before we have to do something. Like clobber them."

I stuttered, "I said nothing about being under duty to _c-clobber_ them." I whispered frantically, missing bits and pieces of the butler and Django's conversation. It was starting to drag on predictably.

"Fool! Use your brain! How am I going to inherit her fortune?" the butler demanded, suddenly very cross with Django, the king of pop..

"You just have to serve her…"

Sighing angrily Kuro adjusted his glasses again with his palm, "Listen, idiot. This is the crucial part of the plan…"

"Before you kill her, you hypnotize her! And you make her write a will that says she will leave her entire fortune to her faithful butler Klahadore."

I resisted the urge to snap my fingers against the horror of the moment, "So THAT's his name." I growled.

"Klahadore." I tried to say it in an edgy fashion, but kind of failed.

_**You're trying too hard.**_

Whatever. "…His name is dumb."

Luffy quirked his head to the side and nodded at me earnestly, "It really is."

"He could have chosen something cooler for his alias, you know?"

"Guys…" Wheezed Usopp, probably straining against every moral he had not to stangle us.

"Yeah, like…Like- uh."

My eyes narrowed in understanding, "Like- Like _Ghost Rider_." I ran my palm through the air in a rainbow arc.

"Pfft." Laugh Luffy, "That still sounds dumb."

I slapped my hand down lightly on the ground, a beaming smile on my face, "Okay, how about John Conner. It's edgy, and you inadvertently have to save the world from Sky-net."

"John Conner sounds ordinary." Luffy whined.

"Guuuys.." Hissed the long nose.

Slightly befuddled I nodded, "I think it's supposed to sound ordinary."

"Meeeeehhh.." The straw-hat boy narrowed his eyes and I waved my hands happily, "No like, it's ordinary so when he does awesome stuff. No one expects it, like, 'Wow, I would have never guess John Conner could save the world. He has such a normal name!'"

"Guys!" Seethed our friend while chopping the air vigorously.

"What?" Luffy and I snapped.

"Listen to them will you! It's important! What if we miss something?!"

Luffy and I looked down reluctantly again, observing Kuro motion towards his head with his hand, "What good are riches if you've always got the Navy chasing after you?"

I agreed reluctantly, "True…The Navy kind of suck like that. Popping up out of nowhere. No explanations…Yeaahh…"

Kuro smirked devilishly, "I've gone legitimate. I'm a pacifist."

Django guffawed loudly and began to cackle, "I guess there are all kinds of pacifists! And after you went and slaughtered the whole girl's family!"

"_Killed_ her family?" I clenched my hands into the dirt and rounded on Usopp, "I thought her parents got SICK…"

Lower lip shivering with either anger or disbelief Usopp gasped, "I know! That's what the villager's and I were told but—"

"If this guy took away her parents…and he's been LIVING with her this entire time—"

Disgust flowered in my stomach, the agonizing feeling of bile churning in my stomach made me wince. It was like seasickness all over again. My throat clammed up, my mouth filled with saliva—

I squeezed my eyes shut, furiously trying not to thrown up.

Dead family.

All alone.

Poor Kaya.

Calmly Kuro turned towards the King of Pop, "I never slaughtered anyone! Kaya's parents' deaths…Well, that wasn't part of my plan."

I glared, "What a monster!"

"Sure, whatever you say. Just hurry up and give us the signal. We've been anchored offshore…For a week now."

Django's expression grew solemn and cold, "Those cutthroats are ready to cut each other's throats now."

I peaked towards Usopp, and he was sweating nervously, "How horrible! I've REALLY just heard something horrible!"

Luffy frowned, "What did they say? It sounded kinda…Mean."

"WEREN'T YOU LISTENING?! IT'S HORRIBLE! THEY'RE SERIOUS!"

Usopp sucked in a deep breath, practically gasping like a fish out of water, "He was after Kaya's family fortune the whole time! For three years he's been plotting to get it all! That butler is captain Kuro!"

Usopp covered his mouth in shock, the color draining from his face as I curled my arms into my chest uncomfortably.

"They're going to attack the village and kill Kaya! This is horrible! Really Horrible!"

Taking a calming breath and making a point to eye at the long nose boy understandingly I reasoned, "Usopp. I think you should calm down. Don't panic." I—

Luffy shifted, the ground crunching softly under his hands and knee's as he stood up, I whipped my head down at the two men below and then back up to my captain, "Luffy! Get down!"

"Don't stand up! They'll see you!"

"Luffy!" I pleaded.

But Luffy was taking a deep breath, his chest puffing out, and his expression looking angry and head strong.

"HEY! YOU GUYS!" He bellowed, and Usopp practically started to cry, and I froze with fear.

"DON'T KILL KAYA!"

Kuro and Django, slightly started by the intrusion gazed up at us, it took a moment for everything to register and then it was like they were trying to burn holes through our heads with their eyes. Kuro especially, his expression beheld a seething angry, but other that the dip of his brows he was utterly calm, collected. I gulped and shivered slightly as the murderous intent oozed off of the butler.

Usopp stuttered incoherently and stood up to yank harshly at Luffy's arm, "YOU IDIOT! NOW THEY'VE SEEN US! WE GOTTA RUN AWAY AND HIDE! THEY'LL MURDER US!"

I snapped my head towards Usopp, "M-Murder?"

"Well, well…If it isn't Usopp." the black clad butler taunted.

"WAHHH!" Usopp yelped, "NOW, THEY'VE SEEN ME, TOO!"

Kuro's suddenly cruel and angry eyes flashed away from view from the harsh glint of the suns light off his glasses. The ebony haired man chuckled darkly, "Hear anything interesting…?"

I still laid on the ground, pretty much scared out of my wits, looking back and forth between Usopp, Luffy, and the Pirate duo below I bit my lip as a harsh set of jitters rolled through my muscles.

Usopp tried to play it off, waving his arms about, trying to convince Kuro that he hadn't heard anything. "NO—I MEAN—HUH? I J-JUST GOT HERE, SO I COULDN'T HAVE—"

Luffy however hadn't even flinched in the face of some brutal psycho butler. He confessed to him; "WE. HEARD. _**EVERYTHING**_."

I gaped openly in horror at my captain, "Holy shit, Luffy!"

"So they heard us.." Django coughed into his hand as he stood up straight, "All right, then. You guys…Look at this ring."

Django slipped a tiny string between his fingers and let a round blade swing in the air slowly.

"Is he gonna try to hypnotize us?" I sputtered in disbelief, thoroughly unimpressed by Django's attempt. I raised my head slightly and cupped my hands around my lips, "THAT TRICK ONLY WORKS ON CHUMPS!" I warned loudly.

"What's that?" Grunted Luffy, hanging his head intensely to stare at the object, I smacked my hand across the back of his calf, "Luffy! Don't stare at it!"

"OH NO! It's a weapon! He's gonna kill us!" Usopp's knees were banging together, he was clutching at his head desperately.

"Usopp. Calm. Down." I tried standing up and only shakily got to my knees, making myself seen from the two below.

"When I say, 'one, two, Django,' you'll fall into a deep sleep." the hypnotist lulled, his voice hollow and clear.

"One."

Usopp began to pull at Luffy's arm, his shoes even kicked up dirt as he shoved, but with no luck, he couldn't make Luffy move. Usopp took a breath and halted for one split second before hurriedly rushing to me with eyes watering, I balked and held up my hands, to get him to stop, breathe, relax. "Mr. Usopp please listen—" I tried to talk over his fast as lightning panicking but he ignored me.

"Two…"

"Oi! Usopp!" I finally shouted, still conscious in my efforts in trying to make him zen, but he just shook his head, looped his arms around my shoulder and began dragging me away from the cliff to where my feet were skidding across the ground.

"TAKE COVER! HE'S GONNA GET US!" he sobbed.

"Usopp wait!" I objected, being hauled and dumped into the dirt beside him as he crawled into a ball with his hands over his head. I huffed and shifted around hurriedly on my now scraped elbows to gawk at my captain still standing on the edge of the cliff, stock still like a statue, "Luffy!" I called, "Get over here!"

"**DJANGO**!"

And Luffy went slack, his shoulders drooped, his eyes closed, and my captain tipped over the edge in slow motion. My breath left me in a single gasp; I slapped my palms into the ground, urging a gas tank of lighter fluid into my legs to be set aflame. I stabbed my legs into the ground, getting ready to scream, I tried to stand up, tried to launch myself to Luffy, but my leg slid from under me, all too weak and shaky from panic.

"LUFFY!" I screeched desperately, and finally Usopp snapped his head up as I winced, he hopped up, arms reaching out, "HUH! WHAT'RE YOU DOING!?"

"YOU'RE GOING TO FALL!"

Luffy disappeared over the edge, and a half a second later I heard the sick sound of slack, dead weight being dropped harshly onto the Earth. I fell back, my head feeling too light, my breaths coming in too quick to let me think straight. I chocked back a sob, "No no no no no!"

My hands clutched into tight balls at my sides, tears automatically welling up and drenching my eyelashes. I was going to scream. I'm going to scream. Nonononono!

_** . .NO!**_ I blearily watched as Usopp crouch over the side of the cliff. His face was pale; he called out to my captain anyway. "HEY!" He roared, "ARE YOU OKAY?! LUFFY!"

"He…" the long nose boy gasped, "I-It can't be!"

"HE KILLED HIM! KILLED HIM!"

"Django," Kuro's merciless voice continued, "Tomorrow at dawn, attack the village. Make a distraction, rough up a few villagers, and kill Miss Kaya."

"NO! YOU CAN'T! I WON'T LET YOU!" Insisted Usopp, tears gathering in his eyes, mouth set in a terrible frown.

"It's as I said Usopp. No one will believe you. _So you can't stop me._"

"Tch! Curses!" wept Usopp, "CURSES!" He shifted on each foot before simply sprinting off into the forest, brushing past me wildly as he cried out with a loud wail.

I rocked back and forth on my stupid, worthless, weak legs. I cupped my mouth with both hands as I gasped frantically. Nearly panicking as badly as poor Usopp. My hands were shaking. I was suffocating, my throat was drying up.

I inhaled one last time—

Before stopping all together.

I held my breath, clenched my teeth, and squeezed my eyes shut.

I blocked it all out.

…

…

I imagined Penny's room.

_The soft carpet beneath my wheelchair._

_Her stuffed animals lined up on her bed._

_Her pillows that hadn't been laid on in months_

_Her round windows peaking out towards the neighborhood._

_Yellow walls._

_Her bookshelf._

_Her little guitar she never learned how to play properly._

_The smell of clean clothes._

_The silence._

_The door opens. Dad is standing there looking tired, his tie is loosened around his neck, his hair is turning more and more gray, shying away from the old brown. It's changing color so smoothly I can barely tell it's turning into the color of steel._

He looks around slowly, and I can tell he's getting over it, gradually, but surely. He's getting over the loss. His eyes settled back onto me, and his smile could easily crack into a grimace, a sad and upset frown. He holds his hand out, and his smile is fits into place.

"_C'mon Claire."_

* * *

A Boom Vast/Boom Jack = a line attached to the bottom of the boom and the mast, a short distance from the mast, that adjusts downward tension on the boom. The name's switch. :9

US YEE LOWLY CAR DRIVERS WITH DA HONKIN HORNS AND DA COOL SPINNY RIMS DON'T KNOW DIDDLY ABOUT SHIPS AND BOATS. :O

(By also looking up "PARTS OF A SHIP" I watched a guide on how to walk in high heels to get the mechanics of Nami walks how she does right. XD)

JUST WAIT TILL THE DAY WHERE I MAY OR MAY NOT PUT CLAIRE IN HEELS.

THERE WILL BE CHAOS.

AND CARNAGE!

Thanks for waiting gaiz, and THANK YOU MY LOVELY BETA DEVON!~

Review if you feel like it!~ :D


End file.
